2023-06-25 13:00:00
Last May, the International Space Station welcomed two Arab astronauts: Ali a-Qarni, a former Royal Saudi Air Force pilot, and researcher Rayyanah Barnawi, the first woman from that country to travel in space. The curious thing is that the first man to achieve that milestone was a prince, Sultan bin Salmán.
Sultan bin Salmán bin Absulaziz Al Saud, as his full name, opened the doors of space to world royalty, donning the NASA uniform.
The prince flew aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery on mission STS-51-G, as a payload specialist, from June 17-24, 1985.
The inspiration to travel to space came to him in 1969, with the arrival of Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins to the Moon, in the NASA Apollo 11 mission. At that time, the prince was 13 years old.
“Humans made airplanes and made advances in industry,” bin Salmán said. In an interview with Arab News, for the 50th anniversary of humanity’s arrival on the Moon. “But for humans to leave their own planet… that really was something else.”
The Arab prince’s trip to space
Sent by his family to study in the United States, he also learned to fly airplanes, earning his license in 1977.
With the birth of Arabsat, the Arab League’s first satellite communications company, the Saudi prince’s interest in space travel grew. By February 1985, the region’s first satellite was put into orbit: it was Arabsat-1A, deployed thanks to an Ariane 3 rocket.
The Arab League received the invitation for one of its members to carry the second satellite, Arabsat-1B. Sultan bin Salman requested to be.
After 10 weeks of training, the pilot prince became a NASA astronaut.
After takeoff from Florida, where he was accompanied by a delegation of 200 people, the Arab prince spent seven days, one hour, 38 minutes and 52 seconds in space, completing 111 Earth orbits.
“A gift from Allah”
“When you see the Earth from space, then you begin to realize that this is a gift from Allah, and that there is more to you and your little community than your own limited passions,” bin Salman later reflected.
“Your care and passion for things become more global, more universal.”
Also the first Muslim in space, bin Salman carried the Koran, Islam’s holy book, reading from it for much of the journey.
Currently, close to turning 67, Prince Sultan bin Salman is president of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities.
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