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Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
Science

First Saudi astronauts to blast off in private mission to ISS

Saudi astronauts Rayyanah Barnawi and Ali al-Qarni, with their crew Peggy Whitson and John Shoffner, pose for a photo before their mission to the ISS [Saudi Press Agency/Handout via Reuters]

Two Saudi astronauts will be travelling to the International Space Station (ISS) for the first time on a private mission to carry out a number of experiments, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

Rayyanah Barnawi, the first female Arab astronaut and breast cancer researcher, and fighter pilot Ali al-Qarni are scheduled to blast off in a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral in the US state of Florida on Sunday.

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