The Saudi Space Agency (SSA; Arabic: وكالة الفضاء السعودية), previously known as the Saudi Space Commission (SSC), is a Saudi independent government entity established by a royal order on December 27, 2018 and elevated to an agency on June 14, 2023.[1] The agency is chaired by Abdullah Alswaha, the Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology.[2]
On July 17, 2024 it was reported that the Saudi Space Agency signed a space agreement with NASA to collaborate on civilian space research and explorations. This is another step forward on the country's ambition to create a robust space sector.[3]
Prior to the establishment of the Saudi Space Agency, the only Saudi astronaut was prince Sultan bin Salman Al Saud, who flew aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery in 1985 as a Payload Specialist on STS 51-G.
In 2022, the SSA partnered with American private spaceflight company Axiom Space to send two Saudi astronauts, including the first Saudi woman in space, to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon as part of Axiom Mission 2.[4] The astronauts selected were Ali AlQarni and Rayyanah Barnawi, with Ali AlGhamdi and Mariam Fardous as backups.[5]
