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.
