17-yr-old in astronaut race
We are delighted by the volume of entries and are highly impressed by the diversity in skill set and backgrounds displayed by the applicants Yousef Al Shaibani, director-general of the MBRSC
dubai — A total of 4,022 applications were submitted by Emiratis hoping to jet off into space. However, only 0.1 per cent of them will be successful in becoming the UAE’s first astronauts.
Registrations for the UAE Astronaut Programme closed on March 31, and the selection process will begin shortly, with a series of psychometric and intensive medical exams. The programme by the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) aims to find four astronauts who will be carrying our scientific experiments at the International Space Station (ISS).
A committee for the selection of astronauts and the specific experiments that will be conducted, have been put into place by the MBRSC. The applicants come from 38 different fields and 34 per cent of them are females.
“We are delighted by the volume of entries and are highly impressed by the diversity in skill set and backgrounds displayed by the applicants,” Yousef Al Shaibani, directorgeneral of the MBRSC, said.
“Success of this programme is underpinned by the talent we hone, and we are looking forward to training a skilled team of individuals to represent our country on board the ISS and contribute to the various experiments and research areas there. Success depends on the ambitious and entrepreneurial talents of our society and is in keeping with the aspirations and ambitions of the state to explore space.”
This phase of the selection process includes carrying out basic medical, psychometric tests and an initial interview. The applicants
Through this programme, we are hoping to inspire a new generation of Emiratis through space exploration and innovation and enable them to contribute to the future of our great country.”
Salem Al Marri, head of higher committee, UAE Astronaut Programme
will be narrowed down to 200, who will take part in the second phase of the selection process, including advanced medical and psychometric test, with a panel interview.
The top four candidates who successfully complete all stages of the selection process will then come together to form the UAE Astronauts Team by the end of 2018.
Once chosen, the four Emirati astronauts will go through a series of training programmes, which are divided into a year-long basic training modules and advanced training modules that will be conducted over a period of three years.
They will also travel to various Astronaut Training Centres around the world providing state-of-theart simulation systems in the field of space training, to enable them to acquire the best skills in this area.
The selection committee is also ensuring they select one or more scientific experiments that are being proposed by universities. So far, a total of five universities have submitted proposals for experiments that fall under the MBRSC’s six categories — some of which include food security and sustainability, advancing material science and sustainable source of water.
“Through this programme, we are hoping to inspire a new generation of Emiratis through space exploration and innovation and enable them to contribute to the future of our great country. We are looking forward to meeting the successful candidates who have the potential to become a part of our final four and I would like to wish everyone who has applied the very best of luck,” Salem Al Marri, assistant director-general for Scientific and Technical Affairs at the MBRSC and head of higher committee of the UAE Astronaut Programme, said.
UAE’s first four astronauts will be announced towards the end of this year.