Al Jaaidi had his life planned out for him: graduate by 21, marry three years later and gift his parents with a few grandchildren to spoil.
This was before he became one of the 1,058 selected from 200,000 hopefuls around the world, to vie for a new home at the first human settlement on planet Mars.
“Marriage, now, couldn’t be further from my mind. How can I, when the relationship could very well come with its own expiry date?” asks the Emirati national.
In his own words, he recounts: “I first heard about the Mars One mission back in April 2013, a few weeks before they first opened up the applications. And I instantly knew I wanted to be a part of this.”
Mars One is a not-for-profit Dutch-based foundation that aims to establish a permanent human settlement on the red planet by 2025.
The mission plan consists of cargo missions and unmanned preparation of a habitable settlement, followed by human landings.
Al Jaaidi claims that he did not want to live with a lifetime of regret by not applying for the mission, adding: “I feel like I was meant for it, inside out. And I believe I fit the profile of what they’re looking for in candidates.”
Having graduated with a Visual Communications degree in December 2012, the Emirati national stated saying goodbye to his family and friends wasn’t a decision that was taken lightly.
“I simply posted the email I received from the Mars One guys onto the family chat group. At first, they all thought it was a joke,” he said.
This was before he became one of the 1,058 selected from 200,000 hopefuls around the world, to vie for a new home at the first human settlement on planet Mars.
“Marriage, now, couldn’t be further from my mind. How can I, when the relationship could very well come with its own expiry date?” asks the Emirati national.
In his own words, he recounts: “I first heard about the Mars One mission back in April 2013, a few weeks before they first opened up the applications. And I instantly knew I wanted to be a part of this.”
Mars One is a not-for-profit Dutch-based foundation that aims to establish a permanent human settlement on the red planet by 2025.
The mission plan consists of cargo missions and unmanned preparation of a habitable settlement, followed by human landings.
Al Jaaidi claims that he did not want to live with a lifetime of regret by not applying for the mission, adding: “I feel like I was meant for it, inside out. And I believe I fit the profile of what they’re looking for in candidates.”
Having graduated with a Visual Communications degree in December 2012, the Emirati national stated saying goodbye to his family and friends wasn’t a decision that was taken lightly.
“I simply posted the email I received from the Mars One guys onto the family chat group. At first, they all thought it was a joke,” he said.
Being the middle son in a family of six brothers and two sisters, he stated: “My family, it hasn’t really sunk in for them. It’s quite crazy coming home telling them you might be going to Mars.
“Overall they’re very supportive but my mom is not fully happy with her son going on a one-way trip to Mars though. She says, I didn’t spend years trying to raise you only to see you abandon us in life. And what about our grandchildren?
For this young hopeful and the remaining 1,057 around the globe, the next item on the list is submitting a medical assessment checklist, which will be sent to the Mars One team.
Those who pass the assessment round will be contacted by April 2014 and will proceed to round three, which will be a reality event aired on TV and probably online, that will see candidates compete in challenges before one person will be picked by the people from the region.
The final round will comprise a group challenge, an international event, which will seal the fate of the final 24 selected candidates who will start their eight-year training as a full-time job and paid Mars One astronauts.
The road ahead may seem daunting for most, but this young Emirati takes strength from his dreams to achieve bigger and better dreams.
Culled from TwennyFourSeven.
“Overall they’re very supportive but my mom is not fully happy with her son going on a one-way trip to Mars though. She says, I didn’t spend years trying to raise you only to see you abandon us in life. And what about our grandchildren?
For this young hopeful and the remaining 1,057 around the globe, the next item on the list is submitting a medical assessment checklist, which will be sent to the Mars One team.
Those who pass the assessment round will be contacted by April 2014 and will proceed to round three, which will be a reality event aired on TV and probably online, that will see candidates compete in challenges before one person will be picked by the people from the region.
The final round will comprise a group challenge, an international event, which will seal the fate of the final 24 selected candidates who will start their eight-year training as a full-time job and paid Mars One astronauts.
The road ahead may seem daunting for most, but this young Emirati takes strength from his dreams to achieve bigger and better dreams.
Culled from TwennyFourSeven.
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