Israel is working to train its first-ever female astronaut as part of NASA’s Artemis program, Innovation, Science, and Technology Minister Gila Gamliel announced late last week during her visit to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
Gamliel described this step as a major investment in Israeli science, technology, and space exploration.
“This milestone will serve as an inspiration for future generations and will highlight the importance of gender equality in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics,” she said in a statement.
Gamliel hopes to strengthen Israeli cooperation with NASA
Gamliel also discussed furthering cooperation between NASA and the Israel Space Agency. This includes further Israeli research efforts on the International Space Station following the success of Israel’s landmark Rakia mission, which saw Eytan Stibbe, Israel’s second-ever astronaut, head into space.
Israel’s first astronaut, Ilan Ramon, died during his first mission in the Columbia space shuttle disaster.
Gamliel also discussed Israel’s continued involvement in the Artemis program, NASA’s new plan to send astronauts to the Moon after over 50 years.
Part of this initiative is NASA’s efforts to safeguard astronauts against some of the perils of space travel, such as cosmic radiation.
However, Israeli scientists have been hard at work developing a radiation shielding suit for space exploration. Dubbed the AstroRad vest, it has already been tested as part of the Artemis missions.
Other Israeli companies are also looking to partner with NASA for deep space exploration, with the Creation-Space accelerator program set to help start-ups integrate with NASA’s lunar and Mars initiatives.