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Join contest that will take your science project to space with Emirati astronaut

Dubai - The experiments will be designed to study the impact of microgravity and will be sent to the ISS via a US-based commercial space-launch firm called NanoRacks.

Students from 15 UAE public and private schools will be granted the chance to send their science experiments to the International Space Station (ISS) - projects that will become part of the first Emirati astronaut's scientific mission in space.
The Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) has launched the 'Science in Space' competition to promote space science studies and enable the UAE's youth to be part of the Emirati astronaut mission to the ISS on September 25. The experiments will be designed to study the impact of microgravity and will be sent to the ISS via a US-based commercial space-launch firm called NanoRacks.

Yousuf Hamad Al Shaibani, director-general of the MBRSC, said: "The mission of the first Emirati astronaut to the ISS will be a historic event for the UAE's space industry and, for the first time, students have the opportunity to learn about the experiments that will be part of the astronaut's mission and conduct them on-ground.
"At the MBRSC, we are committed to involving different sectors, most notably the education sector, in space programmes, to inspire students, get them interested in the space sector, and encourage them to study scientific disciplines so we can contribute to empowering the next generation in STEM fields."
The experiments include the effect of microgravity on cell growth, microorganisms, genes, grass seed germination rates, fungi and algae, the effect of antibiotics on bacteria, basic chemical reactions in space, and other physical, biological and chemical experiments.
The competition is open to students in fifth grade or above, and a total of 15 schools will be chosen by the MBRSC.
The selected ones will participate in a workshop to be held by the MBRSC, where they'll conduct their experiments. The studies will be conducted by the astronaut on board the ISS and the results of the two environments will later be compared.
Salem Al Marri, assistant director-general for the science and technology sector and head of the UAE Astronaut Programme at the MBRSC, said: "The MBRSC aims to diversify the scientific studies conducted by the first Emirati astronaut during his eight-day mission aboard the ISS, in order to enrich human knowledge and derive a database that can be shared with different scientific organisations locally and internationally."
Al Marri added that other than these 15 scientific studies, the Emirati astronaut will be studying the reaction of vital indicators of the human body aboard the ISS, in comparison with Earth, before and after the trip. This is the first time this kind of research will be done on an astronaut from the Arab region. The results of this study will later be compared with research conducted on astronauts from other regions.
More information on the competition is available online at www.mbrsc.ae/scienceinspace, and deadline is April 18.
reporters@khaleejtimes.com