UAE astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi is spending his spare time on the International Space Station reading his favourite comic – The Adventures of Tintin.
Before Dr Al Neyadi, 43, blasted off to the ISS on March 3 for his six-month mission, he said he would be taking the comic books with him, as they are his favourite.
"One of the comics I read on the ISS is that of Tintin – a visionary series that was originally written in the 1950s that dreamt of space travel even before humanity took its first leap into orbit," he tweeted on Saturday.
Written in the 1950s, the cartoon series follows the adventures of a character named Tintin who goes on a voyage to the Moon, with spacesuits portrayed in the storyline similar to real ones used in future Moon exploration.
Tintin's space adventures were spread across a two-part series called Destination Moon and Explorers on the Moon.
Two animated TV shows and one radio adaptation of Tintin have also been made, as well as 24 books and five feature films dedicated to his adventures.
Dr Al Neyadi posted an image of himself reading the comics, with miniature figurines of Tintin in a spacesuit and the rocket portrayed in the books floating in the background.
While Dr Neyadi gets some free time on the ISS, he has a busy schedule that involves maintenance work, scientific experiments, photography and outreach activities.
He carried out the first spacewalk by an Arab astronaut in April, when he ventured outside the ISS into the darkness for a seven-hour maintenance assignment.
He has also been doing live video calls to engage with people in the UAE, in which he speaks to school pupils and university students.
Dr Al Neyadi is the second Emirati astronaut to go to space, following in the footsteps of Hazza Al Mansouri.
Maj Al Mansouri went on an eight-day mission to the ISS, helping pave the way for the country's astronaut programme, which now has four members.
Nora Al Matrooshi, the first Emirati female to be selected as AN astronaut, and Mohammed Al Mulla are the latest to join.
They are currently completing a Nasa astronaut training programme at the Johnson Space Centre in Houston, Texas.
Once graduated, they will become eligible for US-led missions to space.
Dr Al Neyadi is expected to return to Earth next month.
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
Navdeep Suri, India's Ambassador to the UAE
There has been a longstanding need from the Indian community to have a religious premises where they can practise their beliefs. Currently there is a very, very small temple in Bur Dubai and the community has outgrown this. So this will be a major temple and open to all denominations and a place should reflect India’s diversity.
It fits so well into the UAE’s own commitment to tolerance and pluralism and coming in the year of tolerance gives it that extra dimension.
What we will see on April 20 is the foundation ceremony and we expect a pretty broad cross section of the Indian community to be present, both from the UAE and abroad. The Hindu group that is building the temple will have their holiest leader attending – and we expect very senior representation from the leadership of the UAE.
When the designs were taken to the leadership, there were two clear options. There was a New Jersey model with a rectangular structure with the temple recessed inside so it was not too visible from the outside and another was the Neasden temple in London with the spires in its classical shape. And they said: look we said we wanted a temple so it should look like a temple. So this should be a classical style temple in all its glory.
It is beautifully located - 30 minutes outside of Abu Dhabi and barely 45 minutes to Dubai so it serves the needs of both communities.
This is going to be the big temple where I expect people to come from across the country at major festivals and occasions.
It is hugely important – it will take a couple of years to complete given the scale. It is going to be remarkable and will contribute something not just to the landscape in terms of visual architecture but also to the ethos. Here will be a real representation of UAE’s pluralism.
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Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
Paatal Lok season two
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Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
FULL%20RESULTS
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Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
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OPTA'S PREDICTED TABLE
1. Liverpool 101 points
2. Manchester City 80
3. Leicester 67
4. Chelsea 63
5. Manchester United 61
6. Tottenham 58
7. Wolves 56
8. Arsenal 56
9. Sheffield United 55
10. Everton 50
11. Burnley 49
12. Crystal Palace 49
13. Newcastle 46
14. Southampton 44
15. West Ham 39
16. Brighton 37
17. Watford 36
18. Bournemouth 36
19. Aston Villa 32
20. Norwich City 29
match info
Maratha Arabians 138-2
C Lynn 91*, A Lyth 20, B Laughlin 1-15
Team Abu Dhabi 114-3
L Wright 40*, L Malinga 0-13, M McClenaghan 1-17
Maratha Arabians won by 24 runs
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
Race card
4pm Al Bastakiya Listed US$300,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
4.35pm Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,200m
5.10pm Nad Al Sheba Turf Group 3 $350,000 (Turf) 1,200m
5.45pm Burj Nahaar Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,600m
6.20pm Jebel Hatta Group 1 $400,000 (T) 1,800m
6.55pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 $600,000 (D) 2,000m
7.30pm Dubai City Of Gold Group 2 $350,000 (T) 2,410m
The National selections:
4pm Zabardast
4.35pm Ibn Malik
5.10pm Space Blues
5.45pm Kimbear
6.20pm Barney Roy
6.55pm Matterhorn
7.30pm Defoe
