The UAE’s newest astronauts will soon begin spacewalk training at Nasa’s Johnson Space Centre in Houston, Texas.
Mohammed Al Mulla, 34, can be seen in an extravehicular mobility unit — suits astronauts wear during a spacewalk — in photos he published on his Twitter account on Saturday.
Astronauts-in-training wear the heavy suits — which weigh about 130 kilograms — and perform tasks in a pool filled with 2.3 million litres of water.
“I tried on the Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) before starting my spacewalk training, which will take place at the Neutral Buoyancy laboratory (NBL),” he said.
“The EMU weighs approximately 130 kilograms and has a life support system that allows us to complete tasks in the harsh space environment.”
Astronauts carry out routine spacewalks outside the International Space Station to do maintenance tasks and install new equipment.
The NBL pool is 12 metres deep and helps simulate microgravity, allowing trainees to work on a replica of the space station placed under water.
Experienced astronauts also train in the pool regularly to brush up on their skills.
Mr Al Mulla, a former helicopter pilot with Dubai Police, and his colleague Nora Al Matrooshi, 29, a mechanical engineer, joined the UAE’s astronaut corps in 2021.
They started Nasa’s basic astronaut training programme in January. Since then, they have completed survival training in the wilderness and training in supersonic jets.
The UAE’s first two astronauts, Hazza Al Mansouri and Sultan Al Neyadi, graduated from the programme earlier this year.
Dr Al Neyadi, a former IT professional, is preparing for a six-month mission to the International Space Station, set to launch in the spring from Florida’s Kennedy Space Centre.
Maj Al Mansouri is still in Houston and is undergoing training, though it is not known for what mission, if any.
As the ISS reaches its retirement date at the end of this decade, the UAE is looking to secure deals that could help Emirati astronauts land on the lunar surface.
Nasa launched the Artemis programme, which aims build a human base on the lunar surface and then eventually launch astronauts to Mars from there.
The US space agency will attempt to launch its Artemis 1 mission on August 29, an uncrewed test flight around the Moon.
If successful, it will pave the way for Artemis 2 and 3 — crewed flights to the Moon.
The UAE and Nasa are in talks regarding the programme, but no official announcement on the Emirates’ participation has been made yet.
Apart from American astronauts, Canadian and Japanese astronauts will be part of Nasa's crewed missions to the Moon.
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