Emirati astronaut to answer questions from the public in space

Questions can be asked on Twitter and will be answered during four, 20-minute calls during his visit to the ISS

Hazza Al Mansouri will be the first Arab to visit the International Space Station. EPA  

When Hazza Al Mansouri orbits Earth next week at a speed of seven kilometres per second, he will be ready to take your call.

The Emirati astronaut will take four calls from Earth, each lasting between 17 and 20 minutes, during his eight-day visit to the International Space Station from Wednesday, September 25, to Thursday, October 3.

The public can ask the astronaut questions via Twitter, or join children and universities students at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre, where they will gather under a tent to watch a live video feed from inside the ISS.

Four days after he settles into his temporary home, Maj Al Mansouri will give the first Arabic-language tour of the station on Sunday, September 29. It is 109 metres long, the length of an American football field, so there will be a lot for Maj Al Mansouri to show viewers. He is the first Arab to visit the station.

Live sessions are scheduled for Friday, September 27, at 2.30pm, September 29 at 2.40pm, Monday, September 30, at 4.14pm and Tuesday, October 1, at 4.14pm.

With the launch just six days away, Maj Al Mansouri is currently in quarantine with his crew members Roscosmos commander Oleg Skripochka and American Nasa astronaut, Jessica Meir, as well as the backup crew.

On Wednesday, the crews planted a tree at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, a tradition started in 1961 when Yuri Garagin planted a tree before becoming the first man to travel into outer space.

Maj Al Mansouri's voyage can be watched on Nasa's Official Livestream: https://www.nasa.gov/nasalive .