وكالة الفضاء السعودية | |
Agency overview | |
---|---|
Abbreviation | SSA |
Formed | December 27, 2018 |
Type | Space agency |
Jurisdiction | Government of Saudi Arabia |
Headquarters | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |
Abdullah Alswaha | |
Chief Executive Officer | Muhammad al-Tamimi |
Owner | Saudi Arabia |
Website | Official English Website |
The Saudi Space Agency (SSA; Arabic: وكالة الفضاء السعودية), previously known as the Saudi Space Commission (SSC), is a Saudi independent government entity established by a royal order on December 27, 2018 and elevated to an agency on June 14, 2023. [1] The agency is chaired by Abdullah Alswaha, the Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology. [2]
Prior to the establishment of the Saudi Space Agency, the only Saudi astronaut was prince Sultan bin Salman Al Saud, who flew aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery in 1985 as a Payload Specialist on STS 51-G.
In 2022, the SSA partnered with American private spaceflight company Axiom Space to send two Saudi astronauts, including the first Saudi woman in space, to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon as part of Axiom Mission 2. [3] The astronauts selected were Ali AlQarni and Rayyanah Barnawi, with Ali AlGhamdi and Mariam Fardous as backups. [4]
Name |
Selection |
Time in space |
Missions |
---|---|---|---|
Ali AlQarni | 2023 | 9 days, 5 hours and 27 minutes | Axiom Mission 2 |
Rayyanah Barnawi | 2023 | 9 days, 5 hours and 27 minutes | Axiom Mission 2 |
Ali AlGhamdi | 2023 | N/A | Axiom Mission 2 (backup) |
Mariam Fardous | 2023 | N/A | Axiom Mission 2 (backup) |