The first cosmonauts from the United Arab Emirates are trained in the harsh climatic conditions of Russia.
The first astronauts from the UAE are preparing to go through the next stage of training in Russia. This time they will have to pass the test of the low temperatures of the harsh Russian winter.
Hazza Al Mansouri and Sultan Al Neyadi, who were selected last year from more than 4,000 applicants for the title of first emirate trained as an astronaut, are currently participating in the program at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in the Moscow Region.
The next stage of this training includes survival skills training, which will be a key component in preparing one of them for the Soyuz rocket landing on the International Space Station in April.
The tests mimic the conditions in that scenario if the capsule returns to Earth and lands emergencyly at a distant point.
“Yesterday I visited the astronauts. They are getting ready for winter survival training,” said Salem Humaid Al-Marri, assistant general director of science and technology at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center, “They will be in a remote area in conditions similar to Siberian winter, and they will have to survive on their own for two to three days. "
Al-Marri said that although the astronauts would not have to go to Siberia, the temperature during the test would be at least below -10 ° C.
"We met with our Russian colleagues, and they said that our cosmonauts are on the same level as the American astronauts and Russian cosmonauts undergoing training," he added.
Al-Marri also announced that the choice of an astronaut who will be the first emirate in space will take place shortly.
