Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Saturday, Aug 16, 2025

Saudi Arabia to make history as its astronauts set to fly into space shortly

A private mission to the International Space Station (ISS) organized by Axiom Space is due to blast off from Florida on Sunday, carrying the first two Saudi astronauts to go to the orbiting laboratory.
Rayyanah Barnawi, a breast cancer researcher, will become the first Saudi woman to voyage into space and will be joined on the mission by fellow Saudi Ali Al-Qarni, a fighter pilot. The Axiom Mission 2 (Ax-2) crew will take off aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral in the southern state of Florida at 5:37 pm (21:37 GMT).

The team also includes Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut who will be making her fourth flight to the ISS, and John Shoffner, a businessman from Tennessee who will serve as pilot.

The US space agency NASA, SpaceX, Axiom Space and the Saudi Space Commission confirmed, during a press conference in Orlando, Florida, on Sunday that preparations for the AX-2 space mission have been completed as scheduled. The press conference was attended by Eng. Mishaal Ashemimry, special advisor to CEO of the Saudi Space Commission; Mike McAleenan, launch weather officer for the U.S. Air Force 45th Weather Squadron; Joel Montalbano, director of the American program for the International Space Station; Derek Hasman, director of operations at Axiom Space; and Benji Reed, director of Crew Mission Management at SpaceX.

Speakers at the press conference stressed the full readiness of the space mission crew, and that the flight will be launched on schedule from Cape Canaveral, NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Ashemimry expressed her confidence in the successful execution of the scientific mission by the two astronauts Barnawi and Al Qarni on ISS, saying that it is a historic moment for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and for the entire Arab region, as it represents a source of inspiration for the Saudi and Arab youth.

She praised the cooperation with the US space agency NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX, which resulted in achieving great progress in the Kingdom’s plans to explore space and work on scientific research in microgravity to serve science and humanity.

Replying to a question, she said that Saudi citizens throughout the Kingdom are excited about this scientific mission of the their astronauts. “Saudi exhibitions will be launched on space in conjunction with the launch of the space mission of the Saudi astronauts in the cities of Riyadh, Jeddah and Dhahran,” she added.

On their part, Joel Montalbano and Derek Hasman confirmed that the competent authorities in the space flight confirmed the implementation of the flight launch process, and the arrival at the ISS on time. For his part, Mike McAleenan indicated that the weather is suitable for launching the space flight on time, and that follow-up to the weather continues until the launch time. The astronauts are due to spend around 10 days on board the ISS, where they should arrive around 1:30 pm on Monday.

Saudi Arabia established the Saudi Space Commission in 2018 and launched a program last year to send astronauts into space. The four-member team is set to carry out some 20 experiments while on the ISS. One of them involves studying the behaviour of stem cells in zero gravity. They will join seven others already on board the ISS: three Russians, three Americans and UAE astronaut Sultan Al-Neyadi, who was the first Arab national to go on a spacewalk last month.

The mission to the ISS will be the second in partnership with ISS-key holder NASA by Axiom Space, a private space company, which offers the rare voyages for sums that run into the millions of dollars. It is noteworthy that the voyage of the Saudi astronauts comes within the framework of the Kingdom’s program for astronauts, which aims to qualify experienced Saudi cadres for space flights, and to participate in conducting scientific experiments, international research and future missions related to the space sector.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
High-Stakes Trump-Putin Summit on Ukraine Underway in Alaska
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
Mediators Edge Closer to Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Agreement
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
×