Global Outlook

 Prior to the start of his six-month mission to the International Space Station, President Sheikh Mohamed paid a visit to UAE astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi at his residence. At their residence in Al Ain's Umm Ghafa neighborhood, Dr. Al Neyadi, his father, brothers, and other family members welcomed the President. The Emirati astronaut will launch next spring from Florida's Kennedy Space Center on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket together with two American astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut. Dr. Al Neyadi, 41, has been preparing for the trip in Houston, Texas, as well as at facilities in Florida and California, ever since he graduated from NASA 's astronaut basic training program earlier this year. He made a brief trip back to his hometown to inform Sheikh Mohamed about his preparation up to that point and the impending expedition. The President's visit, according to Dr. Al Neyadi, was "the absolute best incentive for me and all the people who work in the space sector in the U...