Zayed University students hosted the first Emirati astronaut Hazzaa AlMansouri on Thursday.
Students from the College of Interdisciplinary Studies in Dubai interviewed astronaut AlMansouri for the ZU Spotlight project. Student interviewers were Business Transformation students Sarah Alrazi and Abdulaziz AlMheiri, and Sustainability student Shyam Abulohom.
In 2019, AlMansouri spent eight days on the International Space Station.
During his stay at the space station, AlMansouri conducted 16 experiments and hosted several events promoting knowledge about space exploration.
Zayed University students asked questions related to their fields of study.
Students were interested in the business side of space exploration and the sustainability of living in space.
Astronaut AlMansouri told the students that space travel is becoming cheaper.
He also said it is important to study how different countries approach space exploration.
“It’s very important to learn from different schools, from different entities,” AlMansouri said.
He praised Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, and NASA, the United States space agency.
“We learn from both schools,” AlMansouri said. “How they conduct their missions, training, and being in space, and that’s really important.”
AlMansouri said that the International Space Station is a great example of sustainable living because people have been living on the station with limited resources for more than 20 years.
The key is that many resources are recycled, and many technologies developed for space are now used on Earth.
On a less serious note, AlMansouri shared how he jokes with fellow astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi about their missions to space.
“He always says, ‘You flew in economy, I flew in business’,” AlMansouri said.
It should be noted that AlMansouri went to the International Space Station on the Russian spacecraft Soyuz while AlNeyadi flew on American Crew Dragon in 2023.
AlMansouri encouraged students to explore how they can contribute to the Emirati space missions by checking the opportunities offered by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre.
