Abu Dhabi - Noor is an Iraqi-American born and raised in Abu Dhabi.
Published: Wed 1 Feb 2017, 10:35 PM
Last updated: Thu 2 Feb 2017, 9:31 AM
A girl who is always in love with space, stars, astronomy will definitely spend time at observatories. That's what makes Noor Rashid different from others.
She is the new face of the next generation of space engineers. She is an aerospace engineering student at the prestigious Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and doing exceptionally well. Her university in Arizona is the world's largest, fully accredited university specialising in aviation and aerospace.
Noor is an Iraqi-American born and raised in Abu Dhabi. She wants to return to the UAE and use her experience at the UAE space agencies.
Noor hopes the UAE will soon have its first UAE astronaut. Have you ever thought of being an astronaut? "No. I want to build something to help them, like satellite, space shuttles, rockets etc. I am getting my private pilot licence."
She likes to do her internship in the UAE and also wishes to work here. "My faculty has at least 20 years of industry experience and I can bring that all to table here. I see myself working at the UAE Space Agency," Noor added.
Though the UAE, a new player in space sector has got ambitious plans with Mars 'Hope' Mission 2020, there is a worrying factor- There is a dearth of young talents in the country to give wings to this dream.
Dr Mohammed Al Ahbabi, director general of UAE Space Agency told Khaleej Times steps are afoot to 'prepare' the next generation of space engineers with scholarships and awareness drive. It is in this light that young scientists like Noor Rashid breathes new hope.
Speaking from her flat in the Capital, Noor said: "The UAE Space Agency was created when I started my university. I want many different things to happen in the UAE."
She walks the talk too. Noor is on Honor Roll and Dean's List every semester of her four-year course at the university that's called 'the Harvard of the sky'. She is a double minor in technical intelligence and math, and has year-and-half left in her course.
In the first semester, she was among select four research-team members in the Society of Women Engineers. "We did research about aerodynamic wings, body and efficiency of wings etc."
Talking about a project, she said: "We once build a rover that could work in the moon. We did it perfectly with zero gravity tyres and all." As for fun work, "we built International Space Station out of ice sticks as an after school activity," she said.
Her school is affiliated with Nasa, Honeywell, Boeing and Lockheed Martin. She feels the UAE should enter into a partnership with her school, which will help bring more people into this field. "I always wanted to know what's out there because we don't know everything. The earth is very small compared to the whole universe."
She also likes other topics. During her school days at the British School - Al Khubairat, she had attended 2011 Global Teen Summit in Seattle on alternative energy.
ashwani@khaleejtimes.com
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