Aviation360 MEA

Sultan Al Neyadi, an astronaut from the United Arab Emirates, has called home since boarding the International Space Station.

On Tuesday, he had a conversation with Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, which was shown live on Nasa TV.

Dr. Al Neyadi smiled at the camera as Sheikh Mohammed spoke to him from the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre in Dubai after quickly inspecting the equipment.

We thank God for your safety and are grateful that you have arrived at the International Space Station, added Sheikh Mohammed.

“I would like to let you know that the young people in the United Arab Emirates and the Arab world are looking up to you and wish you luck,” she said.

“Thank you, Your Highness,” said Dr Al Neyadi.

“Hopefully people will follow in the footsteps of my brother (Hazza Al Mansouri) and mine. This is what we hoped for.”

What types of experiments will the astronaut and his crew do on the ISS, Sheikh Mohammed questioned the astronaut.

“We have a very crowded schedule. Today or in three days time a crew will leave the ISS and our crew will handle all of the tasks and throughout the coming six months we will conduct scientific experiments,” said Dr Al Neyadi.

“We have a large number of scientific experiments that the UAE will take part in, in addition to international agencies.

“One of the scientific experiments is us, Your Highness. Astronauts in microgravity are also subjects of experiments. One day people will go to the Moon and Mars. We have to understand the effects of microgravity on our bodies.

“This is one of the experiments that we conduct on a daily basis. We monitor the impact and the effects of space on our bodies so we can avoid this in the future.”