John Paul M. Joaquin Science 05.22.2023 05:May AM EDT

Rayyanah Barnawi Becomes the 600th Person To Enter Orbit

May 21 is the day Rayyanah Barnawi accomplish many firsts in her life.

Axiom Space has successfully launched Axiom 2 (Ax-2) mission into orbit aboard its Freedom spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket, taking Barnawi and three other astronauts into orbit to board the International Space Station and making history in the process.

Barnawi and her fellow Axiom 2 crew members are expected to come aboard the ISS on May 22, per Collect Space.

Barnawi Ax-2 Mission Details

With the successful launch of the Ax-2 mission, Barnawi and her crewmates are on their way into orbit and the ISS after 16 hours of flying towards it, per CNN. This successful launch has made Barnawi the 600th person to go into orbit and the first Arab woman to orbit the planet.

Barnawi managed to get the 600th-person title through her mission designation and the rules that cover it. As such, Ax-2 pilot John Shoffner took 598, while fellow Saudi Space Commission (SSC) astronaut Ali AlQarni took 599 since she is Ax-2's mission specialist 1.

Barnawi serves as Ax-2's mission specialist 2, allowing her to claim the round number for herself. 600 is not the only round number Barnawi took - she would also become the 72nd woman from the 600 persons to reach orbit.

Ax-2's commander, retired astronaut Peggy Whitson is not included in the count since she had previously been in Earth orbit and the ISS. However, she nevertheless made history by her being the first woman to command a commercial spaceflight; she works under Axiom Space after retiring from NASA in 2018, becoming its director of human spaceflight in doing so.

Whitson aide, Barnawi and AlQarni became the first Arabs and Saudis to launch together on the same mission; the first Arab astronaut to fly and reach space was Sultan bin Salman Al Saud, who served as a payload specialist aboard the space shuttle Discovery in 1985.

The two Saudi women aren't going to the ISS empty-handed - AlQarni has Saudi coffee and dates to share with the astronauts aboard the ISS, while Barnawi has a Saudi flag and earrings from her grandmother, who couldn't attend the launch but gave her blessing to fly into space regardless.

Ax-2 Mission Activity Details

During their stay on the ISS, the Ax-2 astronauts would go ahead with their planned science and outreach programs, with Whitson assisting the three other Ax-2 astronauts in doing so. They will also conduct more than 20 different experiments that involve researching stem cells, DNA-based nanomaterials, and cancer countermeasures.

The astronauts would also test a wearable skinsuit that simulates Earth's gravity to counteract the effects of microgravity, preventing bone loss, muscle mass, and damage to the brain and eyes due to the fluids in the human body shifting upwards to the head, per NASA.

AlQarni and Barnawi would live to stream themselves aboard the ISS to interact with students in Saudi Arabia to help generate interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education.

Tags Axiom Space Axiom misison 2 Ax-2 mission Axiom Space Ax-2 mission Rayyanah Barnawi 600th person to reach orbit Peggy Whitson Ali AlQarni John Shoffner