Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Tuesday, Sep 16, 2025

UAE selects first Arab astronaut to embark on 6-month space station mission

UAE selects first Arab astronaut to embark on 6-month space station mission

The UAE has selected Sultan Al-Neyadi to become the first Arab astronaut to participate in a six-month mission in the International Space Station (ISS), Dubai Media Office reported on Monday.

Al-Neyadi, selected from a pool of over 4,000 candidates to become one of the country’s first two astronauts in 2018, will commence on his mission in 2023.

The venture places the UAE as the 11th country to send a long-term mission to space, according to Dubai Media Office’s statement.

Congratulating the 41-year-old Emirati astronaut, UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan said, “This historic milestone builds on the strong foundations of the UAE’s burgeoning space programme.”


The UAE’s Vice President Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum said Al-Neyadi was an example of youth “who raised our aspirations to the sky where the UAE deserves to be.”

Al-Neyadi will be the second Emirati astronaut to fly to space, after Hazza Al-Mansouri spent eight days in the ISS in 2019 when he blasted into space on a Russian Soyuz rocket from Kazakhstan’s Baikonur Cosmodrome.


Al-Neyadi will be part of the SpaceX Crew-6 mission scheduled for launch in the first half of 2023 from Florida’s Kennedy Space Centre.

On board the ISS, Al-Neyadi will join crew members Nasa astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren Hoburg, and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev to conduct a series of complex and advanced experiments and in-depth research on outer space until September 2023.

His mission was the outcome of a deal signed between the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) and Axiom Space last April.

The astronaut spent five years in intensive training in Russia, the US and Germany, earning the Nasa astronaut's pin after completing around 20 months of general training at the Johnson Space Centre.

His rigorous 1,400-hour training covered an array of exercises including spacewalks, survival training in the event of emergency landing and rescue.

Al-Neyadi previously served for the UAE military as a network security engineer. He earned a PhD in Information Technology from Australia’s Griffith University, and a Bachelor of Science in Electronics and Communication Engineering from UK’s University of Brighton.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
×