Al Neyadi to test space parking skills in Dragon capsule move
The UAE’s Sultan Al Neyadi and his fellow astronauts onboard the International Space Station will put their parking skills to the test this weekend as they make room for the arrival of a cargo craft.
The Nasa and SpaceX Crew-6 team – made up of Dr Al Neyadi, US astronauts Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev – will on Saturday relocate the Dragon capsule that carried them to the ISS.
They will undock the capsule from the space-facing port of the station’s Harmony Module and move it to the forward Harmony port.
The operation is estimated to take 43 minutes.
The move, supported by the Mission Control Centre at Nasa’s Johnson Space Centre in Houston, Texas, will create room for the Dragon cargo craft, which is set to blast off next month.
The astronauts will be required to put on their spacesuits to enter the capsule before flying it the short distance to the port.
It is the latest project in what has been a busy time in space for Dr Al Neyadi.
On Friday, he floated into the history books, becoming the first person from the Arab world to perform a spacewalk.
Dr Al Neyadi undertook a sixand-a-half hour maintenance mission around the ISS, after exiting the space station with Mr Bowen.
They carried out two crucial tasks, including preparing a structure on the station for the installation of a solar array.
The father of six, from Al Ain, shared time-lapse video footage of the remarkable event on social media yesterday and told of his pride at breaking new ground for his country and the region.
“After completing my first spacewalk, I am humbled by the experience,” Dr Al Neyadi wrote on Twitter.
“Here’s a time-lapse capturing one of my most surreal moments on the ISS.
“Thank you to everyone for the unwavering support. Onward to new frontiers”
Dr Al Neyadi arrived at the ISS on March 3 to begin a sixmonth stint in space.
He is the first Arab astronaut to take part in a long-term mission in space.
The astronauts will put on their spacesuits to enter the capsule and fly it the short distance to the Harmony port