Expo 2020 Dubai: UAE astronauts dreamt of reaching the stars since childhood

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Dubai - Nora Al Matrooshi and Sultan Al Neyadi spoke about their experiences during Space Week

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Nandini Sircar

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Published: Mon 18 Oct 2021, 3:03 PM

Emirati astronauts Sultan Al Neyadi and Nora Al Matrooshi got candid on how they once dreamt of going to space, even though the UAE was nowhere on the space map at that time.

Speaking at Expo 2020’s flagship Space Week, Al Neyadi also opened up about how he thought that his daughter would one day be the UAE’s first female astronaut.


Reiterating that despite harbouring a dream to be an astronaut, he had always felt it would be a far cry, as the UAE’s space sector had barely sowed its seeds in the cosmic world at that time.

As fate would have it, Al Neyadi, who holds a doctorate degree in Data Leakage Prevention Technology, was chosen as a backup space-flight participant in the UAE’s first astronaut programme. And the rest, as they, is history.


“I never let go of my dream of being an astronaut. In 2017 I took my daughter to the first science event run by Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center (MBRSC) and that time I thought in 15 or 20 years my daughter could be the first female astronaut from the UAE," he said.

Only one month after that, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, announced the first open selection for all Emiratis for the first batch of the UAE astronaut corp. I was so elated and I told my daughter we’ll be going to space.”

Al Neyadi, along with Hazza Al Mansouri, recently completed their first year of training at the US space agency Nasa.

Meanwhile, Nora Al Matrooshi, the UAE’s first female astronaut has broken the glass ceiling in more ways than one in achieving her dream.

The 28-year old, who was also speaking at the Expo event, said: “It was my opportunity to achieve the dream that I wanted since I was a child.”

Talking about her journey and pursuing her ambition despite earlier rejections, Al Matrooshi, who has completed her mechanical engineering, emphasised how her relentless pursuit of her goal played a big part in her selection for the second batch of the UAE astronaut corp.

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Al Matrooshi said: “I was starstruck when I saw the two female astronauts Jessica Meir and Ann McClain and Hazza Al Mansouri and Sultan Al Neyadi at the final interview for the selection process. I couldn’t stop smiling throughout the interview.”

She said: “I really wanted to become like them. I never thought I would get to meet them that early.

“The powerful imagination of a child inspired me to be an astronaut. As I grew up that thought started building stronger within me. That time there was no astronaut programme, but children don’t look at boundaries. On December 6, 2019, the leadership announced that they were looking for a second batch of astronauts. After I saw the success of the first batch of astronauts, I got even more inspired to join.”

She added" “I did apply to the first batch, but unfortunately I couldn’t make it. But the second batch was my second chance to achieve the dream that I wanted to achieve as a child.”


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