The government of President Bola Tinubu is set to send Nigeria’s first citizen to space, marking a historic milestone for the country. This announcement was made by the Director General of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), Mathew Adepoju, during a press conference on Wednesday.
The Federal Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding in collaboration with The Space Exploration and Research Agency to facilitate this groundbreaking mission.
“This collaboration, which is coming to the country, marks a significant milestone in Nigeria’s 25th anniversary of space exploration and opens new opportunities for scientific research and technological advancement,” stated Adepoju.
He emphasized the potential of this venture to advance technological progress and inspire interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) disciplines among Nigerian youth.
According to The Guardian, Nigeria has been actively pursuing space exploration since 1999, when it established NASRDA. The country has launched several satellites into orbit, the most recent being 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. Additionally, NigeriaSat-X, an equivalent satellite, was co-launched with NigeriaSat-2 at the Yasny military base in Russia.
