Emirati engineer Noura Al Matrooshi will be the first Arab woman to travel to space. He is one of the four astronauts chosen by the Emirates from more than 4,000 applicants.
Emirati engineer Noura al Matrooshi will be the first Arab woman astronaut . This has been announced by the Government of the United Arab Emirates . Al Matrooshi will be part of the team of four chosen to receive training from the US NASA with a view to integrating future missions into space.
“We announce the first Arab woman astronaut, among the two new astronauts selected from among 4,000 candidates to train with NASA for future exploration missions,” said the vice president and prime minister of the Arab country, Mohamed bin Rashid al Maktoum, in a message. on his Twitter account.
We announce the first Arab female astronaut, among two new astronauts, selected from over 4,000 candidates to be trained with NASA for future space exploration missions. Congratulations Noura Al Matrooshi and Mohammed Al Mulla. pic.twitter.com/bfyquyzqAJ
– HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) April 10, 2021
Al Matrooshi will thus be part of the team of four Emirati astronauts, which includes Haza al Mansoori, the first astronaut to travel to space, in September 2020, for an eight-day mission to the International Space Station.
With a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the UAE University, Al Matrooshi excelled in her engineering and mathematics studies and has developed her work in this area.
To be selected, she had to pass a long and difficult process in which 4,305 candidates participated, of which 33% were women, and which included tests of intelligence, personality and technical ability, medical examinations and rigorous tests to assess physical condition. , teamwork and communication skills.
The four Emirati astronauts will be trained at NASA’s Johnson Space Center thanks to a strategic agreement between the Emirates and the United States, through which they will be instructed in manned space flights and space research in order to carry out low-orbit missions.
The UAE has made a strong bet in recent years in the field of aerospace science. In 2014 it created its own space agency and last February it became the fifth country to get a probe, Hope, into the orbit of Mars.
