Nigeria To Send First Civilian To Space

President Bola Tinubu-led government is set to send its first citizen to space.

The Director General of the National Space Research and Development Agency, Mathew Adepoju, disclosed this at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday.

The FG signed the Memorandum of Understanding in a collaboration between NASRDA and The Space Exploration and Research Agency.

The DG stated, “This collaboration, which is coming to the country, marks a significant milestone in Nigeria’s 25th anniversary of Space Exploration journey and opens new opportunities for scientific research and technological advancement.”

He highlighted the potential of this endeavour to foster technological progress and ignite interest in STEM disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) among Nigerian youth.

According to The Guardian, Nigeria has been actively pursuing space exploration since 1999, when it established NASRDA.

The West African country had launched several satellites into orbit, the most recent being the NigeriaSat-X in 2011.

Nigeria’s first satellite, NigeriaSat-1, was launched on September 27, 2003, and a replacement, NigeriaSat-2, was launched on August 17, 2011.

NigeriaSat-2 is considered the most powerful imaging spacecraft ever sent into orbit. Also, an equivalent satellite, NigeriaSat-X, was co-launched with NigeriaSat-2 at the Yasny military base in Russia.