SpaceX rocket model moved after stint at Expo
A towering SpaceX rocket model that was on display in the American Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai has been moved.
The Falcon 9 booster replica is now on display at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre, in Dubai’s Al Khawaneej district.
Pavilion organisers had been looking for a permanent home for the rocket model, which is 43 metres tall. It was one of the most eye-catching displays at the world’s fair, which was held between October 2021 and March 2022. The US Pavilion
had a strong focus on space-themed displays and events, including Moon rock samples collected by astronauts on Apollo missions, a replica of one of the Mars rovers and a visit from astronaut Scott Kelly.
The rocket model towered over the pavilion at the Expo 2020 Dubai site – complete with fake smoke, red lighting and sound effects to make the display even more realistic.
The UAE has teamed up with US space agency Nasa and SpaceX on several of its missions. Sultan Al Neyadi, Minister of State for Youth, became the first Arab astronaut to be launched on a SpaceX rocket in March last year. Alongside three fellow astronauts, he was on board the Dragon capsule, which separated from the rocket once it reached orbit.
The spacecraft docked with the International Space Station 17 hours later, where its crew carried out a six-month science mission.
Two Saudi astronauts were also launched on board a SpaceX rocket in May last year, for an eight-day stay on the orbiting laboratory.
Rayyanah Barnawi, the first Arab woman to go on a space mission, and Ali Al Qarni brought the number of Arabs in space at one time to a record of three.
Dr Al Neyadi welcomed the Saudi astronauts into the space station with Arab hospitality – including offering them dates and water.
He assisted Ms Barnawi, a research scientist, with her investigations on human immune cells.
She studied the inflammatory response of the cells in microgravity, including the changes in mRNA decay, a process that regulates gene expression changes in cells.