HM King, HRH Crown Prince and Prime Minister congratulated by HH Shaikh Nasser on 'Light-1' satellite

TDT| Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

HM the King’s Representative for Humanitarian Work and Youth Affairs, His Highness Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, has extended deepest congratulations to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, as well as to the Bahraini people on the near launch of the first joint Bahraini-Emirati satellite, “Light-1”. 

Named after HM the King’s “First Light” book, the satellite is expected to be launched later this month and is considered a major achievement for the Kingdom of Bahrain, as an elite of Bahraini youth who are skilled and qualified in the field of space contributed to building it. 

HH Shaikh Nasser made the statements while receiving here today Transportation and Telecommunications Minister and Board of Directors Chairman of the National Space Science (NSSA), Kamal bin Ahmed Mohammed, NSSA Chief Executive, Dr Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Aseeri, and Bahrain space team, comprising a group of NSSA youth competencies who contributed to the implementation of the satellite project. 

HH Shaikh Nasser praised the milestone achievement, which is in line with HM King Hamad’s vision and directives to develop the efforts in the field of space sciences and other sciences to keep pace with the requirements of the present and future needs, by strengthening the national capacities, and qualifying Bahraini youth to be creative and excel in this field. 

HH Shaikh Nasser commended the tremendous efforts exerted by NSSA to implement the project that confirms the Bahraini youth’s capabilities across various fields, patriotism and resolve to achieve everything that would boost the kingdom’s status and scientific progress. 

HH Shaikh Nasser hailed the ongoing fruitful cooperation with brotherly UAE, praising the solid deep-rooted fraternal Bahraini-UAE relations. 

Transportation Minister expressed heartfelt thanks, appreciation and gratitude to HH Shaikh Nasser for his unwavering interest and support for NSSA’s 2019-2023 strategy, to achieve HM the King’s vision on developing national capacities and competencies in the field of space sciences. 

The minister affirmed that NSSA will continue implementing several initiatives that will be announced in the coming period, the most important of which will be a full-fledged Bahraini satellite in the next two years. 

NSSA chief expressed pride in the landmark national project, which is the fruitful outcome of HM the King’s leadership, the cornerstone of NSSA’s work, noting that Bahraini youth competencies are distinguished in various engineering fields, and are capable of competing in the space field at the international level. 

He said that the nanosatellite will monitor and study terrestrial gamma-ray flashes by developing and building two payload detectors, using a combination of two different photosensor technologies and scintillating crystals, which reflects Bahrain’s contributions to the international efforts to measure these rays and study their effects on the safety of aircraft structures and the safety of passengers, which will place the Kingdom on the list of countries competing for leadership in space sciences, in line with HM the King’s vision in this regard. 

NSSA’s youth team carried out their tasks within the project during their study at the UAE-based Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research. 

Team members praised HH Shaikh Nasser’s support for them, noting that he is a role model for dedicated Bahraini youth.

They extended sincere thanks to HM King Hamad for supporting and encouraging them, out of HM’s belief in the capabilities of Bahraini youth, noting that the accomplishment is the fruit of HM the King’s vision and unwavering support for NSSA.