Emirati astronauts learn how to operate Soyuz spacecraft
AL MANSOURI AND AL NEYADI TO ALSO LEARN SOME RUSSIAN WORDS
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The UAE’s two astronauts in Russia have been learning to operate the Soyuz spacecraft that will fly one of them to the International Space Station (ISS) in April.
A tweet by the Mohammad Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) on Tuesday showed Hazza Al Mansouri and Sultan Al Neyadi inside a Soyuz spacecraft as they learned the controls as part of their training.
The Soyuz MS spacecraft is capable of transporting up to three people and limited cargo to and from the ISS.
Language issues
Given its limited habitable space — only 10 cubic metres — astronauts must learn how to move and work in a small contained space. They must also learn Russian words for the controls and buttons in the spacecraft as on the ISS are in Russian.
The April flight to the ISS will be commanded by a Russian pilot, Oleg Skripochka, accompanied by one astronaut from the US and one of the two UAE astronauts. The six-hour flight to the ISS will be launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.