Live updates: SpaceX Crew-6 land safely on Earth
Al Ain is planning a hero's welcome for Emirati astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi when he arrives back in the UAE.
Dr Al Neyadi has regularly paid homage to his hometown during his six-month mission aboard the International Space Station.
In April, he posted a picture of Al Ain from space and in May, he celebrated his birthday with a live call from the ISS, during which he revealed that he missed his mother's cooking.
Like many from Al Ain, his family have been closely watching his progress since he arrived in space on March 3.
His niece and nephew, Naila Saif Al Neyadi, 14, and Mohammed Saif Al Neyadi, 13, both spoke of their pride as their uncle prepares to arrive back on Earth on Monday morning.
I felt he brought honour to our tribe. I'm immensely proud of my uncle's accomplishment.
Mohammed Saif Al Neyadi,
nephew of Emirati astronaut
Naila and Mohammed, both pupils at Al Sanawbar School in Al Ain, participated in a special celebration on Friday
“My relationship with my uncle is very good. We meet on Fridays, sit down together, laugh and talk a lot,” Naila told The National.
“I am very proud of him; this is amazing for the UAE and all Arabs.
“We are so excited to see him, and we are definitely going to celebrate our uncle's accomplishment and tell him how proud we are of him.”
Joy for family
Mohammed said he was excited about seeing his uncle again.
“The first thing I want to do when I see him is to take a picture with him,” Mohammed said.
“When it was revealed that he would venture into space, I felt he brought honour to our tribe. I'm immensely proud of my uncle's accomplishment.”
Dr Al Neyadi's father also paid homage to his son's pioneering feats - and said he was looking forward to welcoming him home.
In a video shared by the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre on social media, Saif Al Neyadi said that Dr Al Neyadi has "raised the UAE flag high".
“This is a milestone in the history of the Arabs and the UAE, and for you as well,” he said.
“We are all excited and eagerly awaiting your safe return, raising high the flag of the UAE and making our President – our leader, teacher and source of inspiration – His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, along with the Rulers of the Emirates, as well as Emiratis and Arabs all proud.
"We wish you success. We are excited to welcome you after your safe return and celebrate your achievements."
A native of Um Ghafa in Al Ain city, his journey to space has left an indelible mark not only on space exploration but also on those in his hometown.
He attended primary and secondary school at Um Ghafa School and has maintained strong relationships with his classmates and teachers.
Adel Alobeidli, the principal of Um Ghafa School, said Dr Al Neyadi's journey will inspire future pupils to achieve greater feats.
“We take immense pride in Sultan Al Neyadi, who hails from the UAE and the Arab world, for embarking on an extensive six-month mission in space,” Dr Alobeidli told The National.
“Notably, he comes from Al Ghafa and spent over a decade studying at our school.
“This achievement brings pride to both us and our students. We welcome the prospect of having more individuals like Sultan Al Neyadi, be it in medicine, space exploration or engineering.”
The impact of Dr Al Neyadi's journey extends to those who have already followed a career path in aviation and space.
Wadima Mohammed is a sophomore at UAE University studying aerospace engineering.
“I look up to him and when I knew he was from Al Ain like me, I was really proud. He is all I've been talking about,” she said.
“I keep checking the updates on the website, and when he is back, my professor and classmates are going to see it live and celebrate together.”
Fatima Alblooshi, a freshman at UAE University who is also studying aerospace engineering, said Dr Al Neyadi's journey has been inspirational.
“I imagine myself on a rocket just like Sultan Al Neyadi heading to space,” she said.
“Learning that Sultan Al Neyadi was going to venture into space gave me an extra push to study aerospace engineering.
“Knowing that he's local from the UAE made me proud and motivated me to aim high. Seeing him realise his ambitions encouraged me to stay on course, with the hope of one day sharing a similar destiny.”
If you go...
Etihad Airways flies from Abu Dhabi to Kuala Lumpur, from about Dh3,600. Air Asia currently flies from Kuala Lumpur to Terengganu, with Berjaya Hotels & Resorts planning to launch direct chartered flights to Redang Island in the near future. Rooms at The Taaras Beach and Spa Resort start from 680RM (Dh597).
How Alia's experiment will help humans get to Mars
Alia’s winning experiment examined how genes might change under the stresses caused by being in space, such as cosmic radiation and microgravity.
Her samples were placed in a machine on board the International Space Station. called a miniPCR thermal cycler, which can copy DNA multiple times.
After the samples were examined on return to Earth, scientists were able to successfully detect changes caused by being in space in the way DNA transmits instructions through proteins and other molecules in living organisms.
Although Alia’s samples were taken from nematode worms, the results have much bigger long term applications, especially for human space flight and long term missions, such as to Mars.
It also means that the first DNA experiments using human genomes can now be carried out on the ISS.
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Friday Athletic Bilbao v Celta Vigo (Kick-off midnight UAE)
Saturday Levante v Getafe (5pm), Sevilla v Real Madrid (7.15pm), Atletico Madrid v Real Valladolid (9.30pm), Cadiz v Barcelona (midnight)
Sunday Granada v Huesca (5pm), Osasuna v Real Betis (7.15pm), Villarreal v Elche (9.30pm), Alaves v Real Sociedad (midnight)
Monday Eibar v Valencia (midnight)
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The%20new%20Turing%20Test
%3Cp%3EThe%20Coffee%20Test%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3EA%20machine%20is%20required%20to%20enter%20an%20average%20American%20home%20and%20figure%20out%20how%20to%20make%20coffee%3A%20find%20the%20coffee%20machine%2C%20find%20the%20coffee%2C%20add%20water%2C%20find%20a%20mug%20and%20brew%20the%20coffee%20by%20pushing%20the%20proper%20buttons.%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EProposed%20by%20Steve%20Wozniak%2C%20Apple%20co-founder%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
INDIA V SOUTH AFRICA
First Test: October 2-6, at Visakhapatnam
Second Test: October 10-14, at Maharashtra
Third Test: October 19-23, at Ranchi
