Hazzaa Al Mansoori is hoping he has inspired future generations of Emirati astronauts.
The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre has confirmed that Al Mansoori and Sultan Al Neyadi are due to return back to the UAE on Saturday to a hero’s welcome after the recent eight-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS), where Al Mansoori became the first Emirati astronaut.
And he hopes, following his experience, he will be the first of many.
He said: “I’m proud of completing this mission which is only the start for manned space missions. I am only the first, and queues of future astronauts will follow. I am determined to share the experience with the young generations who are interested in this vital sector for the UAE.
“In the UAE, we persevere in any field we enter. We are now working in the space sector and manned missions, and we will continue to do so. The mission had another objective, which is presenting a role model for the next generation to look up to. Thank you, wise leadership for creating a motivational environment for everyone.”
Al Mansoori, who returned to earth aboard the Soyuz MS-12 on October 3, was speaking at a joint press conference with Russian astronaut Aleksey Ovchinin at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Stars City, Moscow.
He is due to finish his medical check-ups tomorrow (Friday), before heading back to the UAE.
“The Arab region has to scoop this opportunity to start planning for future generations in the space sector,” he said.
Al Mansoori participated in 16 studies before, during, and after the mission; including six studies performed at the ISS in a nearly zero-gravity environment, in partnership with international space agencies.
He conducted a number of studies, including thorough medical studies by specialists, and overseen by Doctor Hanan Al-Suwaidi, in the Yuri Gagarin Centre. Six of these were conducted in microgravity to study the reaction of vital indicators of the human body aboard the ISS, brain DTI, osteology, motor control, time perception in microgravity, fluidics (fluid dynamics in space), and DNAm-Age.
“The region had other Arab astronauts including Prince Sultan bin Abdel Aziz from KSA, and Mohamed Fares from Syria; however, they did not go through the similar scientific experiments. Performed on an Arab for the first time, the scientific studies have added value to our mission,” Al Mansoori explained.
“It is fundamental for the future of the UAE’s manned space missions to have joined other countries in having scientific studies conducted abroad ISS.”
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