Top US astronaut to visit UAE schools this week

DUBAI, 22nd April, 2015 (WAM)-- To familiarise UAE students about space travel and share the experiences of living on a space station, American astronaut Dr. Donald Thomas, who holds the world record for the longest stay on-board a space station, will visit some schools in Dubai next week. The initiative is part of a joint collaboration between the UAE-based Compass International Tours and the US Space and Rocket Centre, USSRC, an affiliate of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA, and allows the region’s students to interact closely with one of the highly acclaimed legends of deep space exploration. Dr. Thomas is acknowledged as one of the foremost authorities on space exploration, having set a world record for spending the longest time on an international space station, a total of 1,040 hours over four missions. In 1990, he was selected by NASA as the International Space Station Programme Scientist to oversee NASA’s experiments conducted on the International Space Station. Starting April 27th, Dr. Thomas will be visiting 14 Dubai-based schools, including the Westminster School, Crescent School, Wellington Academy, Cambridge International School, Winchester School, School of Research Science and GEMS Modern Academy. Thomas will also be joined by Dr. Deborah E. Barnhart, CEO and Executive Director of USSRC, and Michael Flachbart, Vice-President of Centre Operations at the USSRC. – Emirates News Agency, WAM – http://www.wam.ae/en/news/general/1395279534144.html