UAE space programme races full-steam ahead

The ambitions of Emiratis to participate in exploration are in synergy with the national vision

The deadline looms and the preparations are in top order. The UAE Astronaut Programme is in full swing and the workshop held this week to inspire and educate potential candidates is a precursor to the exciting roll-out of programmes that will culminate in the UAE taking a giant leap into the space field. The enthusiasm and passion for taking the country forward is evidenced by the rush of applications for the astronaut programme — more than 3,000 Emiratis have applied to make it to the first batch of astronauts.

The journey from December 3, 2017, when the hunt for the first batch was announced, to 2021, by when the first four Emirati astronauts will take their places on the International Space Station, will enter the annals of UAE’s evolution as a period of remarkable expansion of national goals and international presence.

The workshop showcased the keenness and far-reaching ambitions of Emiratis to participate in this endeavour, which are in perfect synergy with the national vision.

It also highlighted the fruits of the government’s efforts in empowering women, as demonstrated by the many instances of Emirati women expressing an unbounded ambition to become astronauts and take their country to greater heights.

Credentials in space exploration are among the indispensable markers of a nation’s ability to set the pace for others to follow and the UAE’s determination has seen it evolve into an enviable pace-setter across a spectrum of domains, which now includes space.

The applications of the discoveries of space have always aided mankind’s progress and the UAE, in envisioning a strong role in this sphere, will be providing a cumulative impetus for global good.