Saudi Arabia has declared that later this year, the country will launch its first female astronaut.
Saudi Press Agency said on Sunday that male astronaut Ali Al Qarni and female astronaut Rayyanah Barnawi will be going to the ISS in the second quarter of this year.
The Saudi Space Commission confirmed on Twitter that they will be participating in the upcoming AX-2 mission to the ISS.
A Tweet from the group stated, “Every trip has its pioneers and every goal has its heroes.”
The Saudi Human Spaceflight Programme will train two more astronauts, Mariam Fardous and Ali Al Gamdi, to meet all of their missions’ needs.
According to Abdullah Bin Amer Al Swaha, chairman of the Saudi Space Commission, “through this programme, the kingdom seeks to activate scientific innovations at the level of space sciences, enhance its ability to independently conduct its own research that will reflect positively on the future of the industry and the country.”
“[It will] develop human capital by attracting talents and the necessary skills, and increase the interest of graduates in the STEM fields”
The National previously reported that two Saudi astronauts might join the Emirati Sultan Al Neyadi on the ISS.
The former Al Ain IT professor Dr. Al Neyadi will leave on his six-month mission from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on February 26.
According to a Reuters report from last October, the Saudi astronauts plan to participate in the project for a total of two weeks.
Prince Sultan bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, a pilot for his country’s air force, made history by becoming the first.