SpaceX sends Saudi astronauts, including nation’s 1st woman in space, to International Space Station
- SpaceX launched the ticket-holding crew, led by a retired Nasa astronaut, on a chartered multimillion-dollar flight on Sunday
- The four should reach the space station in their capsule on Monday morning; they will spend just over a week there before returning to Earth off the Florida coast
The four should reach the space station in their capsule on Monday morning; they will spend just over a week there before returning home with a splashdown off the Florida coast.
Sponsored by the Saudi Arabian government, Rayyanah Barnawi, a stem cell researcher, became the first woman from the kingdom to go to space. She was joined by Ali al-Qarni, a fighter pilot with the Royal Saudi Air Force.
They are the first from their country to ride a rocket since a Saudi prince launched aboard shuttle Discovery in 1985. In a quirk of timing, they will be greeted at the station by an astronaut from the United Arab Emirates.
“This is a dream come true for everyone,” Barnawi said before the flight. “Just being able to understand that this is possible. If me and Ali can do it, then they can do it, too.”
