Saudi Arabia's First Female Astronaut Arrives at the International Space Station

On Monday, June 1st, the International Space Station welcomed two Saudi citizens, including the first female astronaut from the country. The SpaceX spacecraft, carrying four crew members, docked with the International Space Station less than 16 hours after launch from Florida, USA, at an altitude of 430 kilometers above Earth. The four individuals will spend just over a week at the International Space Station before returning to Earth. Currently, there are 11 astronauts at the International Space Station, including citizens from the USA, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Russia. The two Saudi visitors are Rihana Barnawi, a 33-year-old researcher in stem cell research, and Ali Al-Qarni, a fighter pilot. Their companions on the flight to the International Space Station are John Shafner from Tennessee, USA, and Peggy Whitson, a retired American astronaut. Shafner is an investor, and Whitson currently works at Axiom Space in Texas. This company facilitated the travel of three investors to the International Space Station last year, with each ticket costing approximately $55 million. In the past, only one Saudi citizen has traveled to space, which was in 1985 when a Saudi prince flew aboard the American spacecraft Discovery.