5 Things To Know About Nigeria Sending First Civilian To Space

• A Nigerian will be sent to space for the first time courtesy of a partnership between the Space Exploration and Research Agency (SERA) and the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA)
• SERA will reserve a seat for the Nigerian citizen in an upcoming Blue Origin New Shepard Suborbital Space flight
• The planned flight is part of SERA's broader effort to send individuals from nations historically under-represented in space

Legit.ng journalist Adekunle Dada has over 5 years of experience covering metro and government policy

FCT, Abuja - It is no longer news that the Space Exploration and Research Agency (SERA) has partnered with the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) to send the first Nigeria into space.

The Director General of NASRDA, Dr Mathew Adepoju, broke the news at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday, June 19.

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Here are five things to know about the planned flight into space as reported by TheCable:

1. SERA, a global space agency dedicated to increasing access to space for all nations, will reserve a seat for Nigeria on an upcoming Blue Origin New Shepard Suborbital Space flight.
2. The Blue Origin New Shepard space vessel is a pressurized and spacious crew capsule with room for six people, and it's environmentally controlled for comfort. The vessel is also fully autonomous. There are no pilots.
3. The flight is part of a broader effort to send individuals from nations historically under-represented in space, highlighting Nigeria’s growing role in the international space community. In 2022, SERA carried out the same project and sent Victor Hespanha, a Brazilian engineer, to space.
4. New Shepard’s development flight test programme concluded in 2021 following 16 consecutive successful flight tests, including three successful capsule escape tests, demonstrating that the crew escape system can activate safety during any phase of flight.
5. The Learnspace Foundation, an NGO dedicated to promoting space education and opportunities in Nigeria, played a crucial role in securing a spot for Nigeria as the African country for this mission.

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Africa eyes potential bounty from space

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that after decades on the sidelines, African countries are venturing into the space industry, hoping to reap rewards in agriculture, disaster prevention and security.

Ivory Coast announced the creation of a space agency and plans to build the country's first nanosatellite by 2024. In April 2023, Kenya's first working satellite was put into orbit by a SpaceX rocket launched from the United States.

The two countries follow African pioneers South Africa, Nigeria, Algeria and Egypt -- a trailblazer which owned the first African satellite sent into space in 1998.

Source: Legit.ng