No bigger honour

Can you imagine having a planet named after you? Well, Saudi student Faisal Aldossary sure can.

On Tuesday, the Saudi Press Agency announced that the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration, honoured Faisal by naming a minor planet after him. The UC Berkley student was honoured courtesy of his scientific breakthroughs in his research on fabricating botanical hormones for agricultural applications. The newly discovered asteroid will now be referred to as Aldossary 34559, taking the student’s last name.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by KSC Visitor Complex (@kennedyspacecenter) on

NASA has long taken to naming planets after people who have contributed to the field of science. It is how the agency recognises and appreciates the work of students at the Intel International Exhibit for Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF). Moreover, Faisal is not the only Saudi student to have a planet named after him. NASA honoured Abduljabbar Al-Houmoud in 2016 and Fatima Al-Sheikh in 2017, who won thanks to their presentations at the Intel ISEF.

Another win for the region!

– For more about Dubai’s lifestyle, news and fashion scene straight to your newsfeed, follow us on Facebook

Media: Instagram