UAE selected the first two astronauts to space

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will become one of the few countries to bring people to work on the International Space Station.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced Hazza al-Mansouri (34) and Sultan al-Neyadi (37) will become the first two astronauts to perform their duties on the International Space Station (ISS). ) , AFP reported on September 3. The astronaut duo will "lift the ambition for future generations of the UAE" , according to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashed al-Maktoum, the country's vice president and prime minister.

International Space Station (ISS) operates in space.

Sheikh Mohammed said last year he would send four astronauts to the ISS within five years. The UAE is trying to develop the space sector with a program worth 5.4 billion USD. The country has announced its plan to become the first Arab country to introduce an unmanned probe, dubbed " Hope" , to orbit Mars in 2021.

The astronaut program will help the UAE become one of the few countries to bring people to space. The first Arab country to do this was Saudi Arabia's astronaut Sultan bin Salman Al-Saud flying on the US shuttle in 1985. Two years later, Syrian pilot Muhammed Faris also boarded the Soviet Mir space station to work for a week.

Mansouri and Neyadi are two of more than 4,000 people enrolled in the program. They are recruited after a very rigorous assessment process. The UAE also plans to build a "Science City" to simulate life on Mars and plan to establish the first human base at the red planet in 2117.