UAE’s Sultan Al-Neyadi becomes first Arab astronaut to complete spacewalk

Dubai: United Arab Emirates astronaut Sultan Al-Neyadi has become the first Arab to perform a spacewalk during Expedition 69, ejecting from the International Space Station (ISS) and completing his spacewalk. The historic spacewalk lasted 7.01 hours in the vacuum of space on the starboard side of the truss structure of the ISS, serving two major objectives.

One of the objectives of the extravehicular activity (EVA), carried out by al-Neyadi with NASA flight engineer Stephen Bowen, was to work on a series of preparatory tasks that included routing power cables, which were successfully concluded.

These cable works were completed as a precursor to the installation of the space station’s fourth roll-out solar array, known as the International Space Station Roll-out Solar Array (iROSA), to be delivered on an upcoming SpaceX Dragon cargo mission. scheduled to be done. , The next objective was to recover a vital Radio Frequency Group (RFG) unit.

This communications antenna, or RFG, will remain bolted to the station for now due to the difficulty of removing it. Before embarking on their spacewalk, al-Neyadi and Bowen underwent a two-hour oxygen purge to eliminate nitrogen from their bodies.

Next, Warren Hoberg and Frank Rubio helped the astronauts put on their spacesuits—a major operation in itself. It took an additional hour for both al-Neyadi and Bowen to put on their spacesuits and safety gear before entering the airlock to open the external hatch to gradually reduce the pressure to a safe level.

Prior to the spacewalk, a thorough checkup was performed to ensure the safety of the astronauts. During their altitude walk outside the ISS, al-Neyadi and Bowen faced two major challenges: radiation and extreme temperatures.

The surrounding atmosphere in space can reach scorching temperatures of up to 120 °C in sunlight and as low as -150 °C when out of sight of the Sun. While the spacesuit is designed to handle all this, careful management of the suit during the mission was also a task.

Hamad Obaid Al-Mansouri, Chairman of MBRSC, said: “UAE Mission 2 is a truly inspirational endeavor that embodies the Emirati spirit of excellence and determination to achieve greatness in all we do.”

“From its inception as the longest Arab space mission to the historic placement of the first Arab increment on an ISS expedition, and now continuing with the ground-breaking achievement of the first Arab spacewalk by Sultan Al-Neyadi, this mission has has set a new standard of excellence in space exploration.”

“Sultan Al-Neyadi’s spacewalk has generated an unprecedented level of excitement and interest within the public, underscoring the immense importance of this mission,” said Salem Humaid Al-Marri, Director General of the MBRSC.

“The Sultan is conducting ground-breaking scientific experiments on the ISS, showcasing another dimension of the UAE’s remarkable expertise in space exploration, in addition to spacewalks. This milestone achievement will play a key role in restoring the International Space Station to its full operations.” capability, strengthening the UAE’s position as a major contributor to the global space community,” Al-Ma’ari said.

Al-Neyadi will soon complete two months in space after launching from Cape Canaveral in Florida with his Crew-6 crew members on March 2. For his second month on the space station, al-Neyadi conducted several experiments.

The UAE Astronaut Program is one of the projects managed by the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center under the UAE’s National Space Program and funded by the ICT Fund of the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority, which aims to support research and development in the ICT sector Is. Promote the integration of the UAE and the country on the global stage.