As the Gulf country increasingly expands into the space sector to diversify its economy, the United Arab Emirates has chosen the first Arab woman to train as an astronaut.
Nora al-Matrooshi, an Emirati national who currently works at Abu Dhabi’s National Petroleum Construction Company as a mechanical engineering graduate, will enter NASA’s 2021 Astronaut Candidate Class in the United States.
A UAE probe entered Mars’ orbit in February, marking the Arab world’s first interplanetary mission. By 2024, the UAE hopes to launch a moon rover, and by 2117, it hopes to create a Mars settlement.
Matrooshi will be joined by another Emirati, Mohammed al-Mulla, bringing the total number of UAE Astronaut Program participants to four. They include Hazza al-Mansouri, who traveled to the International Space Station in 2019 and became the first Emirati in space.
In 2017, the UAE established a National Space Program to foster local expertise.
