Saudi Arabia has announced it will send its first female astronaut into space later this year.
Rayyanah Barnawi will travel to the International Space Station (ISS) in the second quarter of this year, along with male astronaut Ali Al Qarni, the Saudi Press Agency said on Sunday.
They will be travelling as part of the AX-2 mission to the ISS, the Saudi Space Commission said on Twitter.
“Every journey has its pioneers and every mission has its heroes,” read a Tweet from the commission.
Two more astronauts, Mariam Fardous and Ali Al Gamdi, will train on the Saudi Human Spaceflight Programme on all mission requirements.
“Through this programme, the kingdom seeks to activate scientific innovations at the level of space sciences, enhance its ability to independently conduct its own research that will reflect positively on the future of the industry and the country,” said Abdullah Bin Amer Al Swaha, chairman of the Saudi Space Commission.
“[It will] increase the interest of graduates in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (Stem), and develop human capital by attracting talents and the necessary skills.”
The National reported last year how Emirati Sultan Al Neyadi could be joined on the ISS by two astronauts from Saudi Arabia.
Dr Al Neyadi, a former IT professor from Al Ain, will depart from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on February 26 for the six-month long mission.
The Saudi Arabian astronauts are expected to join the project for two weeks, Reuters reported in October.
Saudi Arabia's Prince Sultan bin Salman, an air force fighter pilot, became the first Arab in space in 1985.
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Salah in numbers
€39 million: Liverpool agreed a fee, including add-ons, in the region of €39m (nearly Dh176m) to sign Salah from Roma last year. The exchange rate at the time meant that cost the Reds £34.3m - a bargain given his performances since.
13: The 25-year-old player was not a complete stranger to the Premier League when he arrived at Liverpool this summer. However, during his previous stint at Chelsea, he made just 13 Premier League appearances, seven of which were off the bench, and scored only twice.
57: It was in the 57th minute of his Liverpool bow when Salah opened his account for the Reds in the 3-3 draw with Watford back in August. The Egyptian prodded the ball over the line from close range after latching onto Roberto Firmino's attempted lob.
7: Salah's best scoring streak of the season occurred between an FA Cup tie against West Brom on January 27 and a Premier League win over Newcastle on March 3. He scored for seven games running in all competitions and struck twice against Tottenham.
3: This season Salah became the first player in Premier League history to win the player of the month award three times during a term. He was voted as the division's best player in November, February and March.
40: Salah joined Roger Hunt and Ian Rush as the only players in Liverpool's history to have scored 40 times in a single season when he headed home against Bournemouth at Anfield earlier this month.
30: The goal against Bournemouth ensured the Egyptian achieved another milestone in becoming the first African player to score 30 times across one Premier League campaign.
8: As well as his fine form in England, Salah has also scored eight times in the tournament phase of this season's Champions League. Only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 15 to his credit, has found the net more often in the group stages and knockout rounds of Europe's premier club competition.
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Co-founders: Vidyuth Srinivasan, co-founder/chief executive, Ashlesh Sharma, co-founder/chief technology officer, Lakshmi Subramanian, co-founder/chief scientist
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Sector/About: Entrupy is a hardware-enabled SaaS company whose mission is to protect businesses, borders and consumers from transactions involving counterfeit goods.
Initial investment/Investors: Entrupy secured a $2.6m Series A funding round in 2017. The round was led by Tokyo-based Digital Garage and Daiwa Securities Group's jointly established venture arm, DG Lab Fund I Investment Limited Partnership, along with Zach Coelius.
Total customers: Entrupy’s customers include hundreds of secondary resellers, marketplaces and other retail organisations around the world. They are also testing with shipping companies as well as customs agencies to stop fake items from reaching the market in the first place.
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Name: Brendalle Belaza
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Mubadala World Tennis Championship 2018 schedule
Thursday December 27
Men's quarter-finals
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