Saudi Arabian astronauts, including the first Arab woman, sent by SpaceX to the International Space Station

The first Arab woman astronaut has launched on a mission to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a private rocket.

On Sunday’s mission, Saudi fighter pilot Ali al-Qarni traveled with Saudi breast cancer researcher Rayyanah Barnawi.

For decades, the two are the first Saudi astronauts to travel to space.

At 5:37 p.m. local time (21:37 GMT), they launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the southern American city of Cape Canaveral.

Along with John Shoffner, a Tennessee businessman who is the pilot, the crew also includes Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut who will be making her fourth trip to the ISS.

Being the first Saudi woman astronaut to travel to space was “a great pleasure and honor,” according to Barnawi, who was sponsored by the Saudi government.

She expressed enthusiasm for both the research she will conduct aboard the ISS as well as the opportunity to share her experiences with young people.

 “Being able to see their faces when they see astronauts from their own region for the first time is very thrilling,” she said.

This mission marks Houston-based Axiom Space’s second private trip to the space station.

Three businessmen and a retired NASA astronaut participated in the first one last year.

In a few more years, the company wants to begin constructing its own rooms at the station, then eventually remove them to create a standalone outpost that can be rented.

Axiom declined to disclose the cost of the anticipated 10-day mission that Saudi Arabia and Tennessee businessman Shoffner are paying.

First Arab woman astronaut

A $55 million price per ticket was previously stated by the company.

NASA has two private missions planned yearly, embracing space tourism after decades of rejecting it.

It has been done periodically for years by the Russian Space Agency.

Source- AlJazeera.com