Emirati girl's finding to be sent to space

Abu Dhabi - The UAE was the first country outside the US to host the completion

Motivating students to join the space industry was part of Wednesday's highlight at the Global Space Congress, with the announcement of the Genes in Space competition winner, a 14-year old Emirati girl Alia Al Mansoori from Al Mawakeb School Al Barsha in Dubai.
The UAE was the first country outside the US to host the completion, which challenged students from Grades 7 to 12 to innovate DNA analysis experiments, that could aid to space exploration.
Al Mansoori, who created a proposal for the 'Genes in Space Challenge' became part of the first generation of space DNA scientists who will send her experiment to space from the Kennedy Space Center between March and July, after being tested by astronauts at the International Space Station.
Her project, which was selected by a panel of judges as the top from five teams of eight students, focused on how space exposure may affect the health of live organisms.
Over 100 submissions from 75 schools were looked at by the judges, yet the 14-year-old's experiment won the hearts and minds of the expert panels.
The inspirational finalists were not left behind without some recognition, as they also received mentorship from Harvard, MIT and Khalifa University PhD scientists, won miniPCR DNA Discovery Systems for their schools and had the chance to present their fascinating experiments to leading scientists.
The UAE winner however, will attend the Space Biology Camp at Khalifa University, be listed as Principal Investigator in NASA documents and receive travel awards to Kennedy Space Center to witness her remarkable experiment launch, before her very own eyes.
Dr Alice Bunn, Director of Policy, UK Space Agency, told Khlaeej Times that focusing on youngsters and encouraging students to connect with real-life space missions is of the essence.
"It is fantastically exciting for space process for the world, what I find heartening and inspiring is the broader benefits of space programmes here, so while the flagship is the mission to Mars, it's really clear here that you reco-gnise that total breath all the way down to encouraging the next generation which is something to focus on."
jasmine@khaleejtimes.com

• Abu Dhabi