First Nigerian in space: Matters arising
Against the backdrop of a mixed grill of tales of the good, bad and ugly turn of events in the country (politically speaking), it is refreshing to witness tendencies that lift the souls of Nigerians. One of such is the recent story of the first Nigerian to enter space, with his name as Owolabi Salis […]
Against the backdrop of a mixed grill of tales of the good, bad and ugly turn of events in the country (politically speaking), it is refreshing to witness tendencies that lift the souls of Nigerians. One of such is the recent story of the first Nigerian to enter space, with his name as Owolabi Salis – a New York-based lawyer.
His June 29, 2025 trip to space, along with five other passengers on board the ‘Blue Origin’ vessel, was about a tourist who joined the growing fad of space tourism, an exclusive venture for rich individuals distinct from the professional astronauts to venture into space for the thrill of experiencing weightlessness, an experience the force of gravity on earth cannot allow. His trip lasted for 10 minutes at a height of 105 kilometers, which is referred to as the boundary of space.
Space tourism refers to recreational space travel, primarily involving suborbital or orbital flights, courtesy of commercial services offered by private companies. Sub orbital flights are ventures into space at a height of 100 kilometers for a short time while the full orbital involves travelling round the earth with an unearthly perspective of the world hanging in space.
Considering that the ceiling of commercial flights is between 13,700 kilometers, while military jets (the Russian Mig fighter) have achieved a maximum height of 37,000 kilometers, it becomes easy to appreciate the difference between regular flights within the boundaries of the earth’s atmosphere and the extreme circumstances involved in space travel.
Not surprisingly, it is a growing niche market, currently patronised by the very rich, with companies like SpaceX (owned by Elon Musk), Blue Origin (owned by Jeff Bezos) Virgin Atlantic, who are driving spaceflights for tourists. Incidentally, even as it is very risky and rockets easily blowing up in the case of even the minutest launch and other operational errors with almost total fatality of passengers, along with its highly expensive nature, which limits its patronage to a select few, space tourism is evolving, with plans for more accessible and frequent flights in the future. Just as well is the number of companies engaging in it growing.
The foregoing notwithstanding, while space tourist, Owolabi Salis, who sponsored himself at a princely cost of $2 million (N3.2 billion), has fulfilled a life dream, his venture goes beyond his personal circumstances. If nothing else, his enterprise has put Nigeria’s name on the map of countries whose citizens are on the honours roll of space visitors. These are the US, Russia, Britain, China, France, Japan and India, along with African countries like Egypt, South Africa, Algeria. Other African countries that are joining the race include Kenya, Morocco and Ethiopia.
Beyond placing Nigeria among space visiting countries, the venture by Owolabi Salis also offers renewed interest in the country’s dalliance with space. For, devoid of a spur like his, not a few Nigerians may easily appreciate the state of affairs with respect to Nigeria’s status in the space race. And in an era where progression in space enterprise offers a nation formally or otherwise, a measure of esteem with respect to technological advancement in the comity of nations, his venture serves as a landmark dispensation, which evokes the need for a revisit of the country’s drive towards the conquest of space.
Given that only a few Africans have been in space before him, he is a forerunner of sorts. The first African in space from an independent African country space was the South African Mark Shuttleworth, who in 2002 flew to space in a Russian made Soyuz vessel. The next was Owolabi Salis. However, with respect to space visitors of African heritage, the list is well populated, with the first being the Cuban Arnaldo Tamayo Menendez who travelled in a Russian vessel in 1980.Ever since, several others have followed suit.
From the perspective of government, Nigeria’s space aspirations are stated as ‘ambitious’, encompassing the development of indigenous satellites, a launch vehicle, and even sending a Nigerian astronaut to space.
While progress has been made in several areas, even with significant delays, the government claims to be leveraging its space programme for socioeconomic development, focusing on applications in areas like agriculture, disaster management, resource monitoring and enhancing national capacity for fighting insecurity.
Yet, as ambitious as the Nigerian government’s intent and perspective may be, its enterprise so far has remained mostly earth-bound, but for a few isolated ventures beyond the skies. For the records, the country has a space programme primarily managed by the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) with the goal of developing and utilising space science and technology for socioeconomic benefits. The programme includes satellite development and launch, with the country having launched several satellites into space.
According to available records, Nigeria has launched a total of seven satellites. These include NigeriaSat-1, NigeriaSat-2, NigeriaSat-X, NigComSat-1, NigComSat-1R and NigeriaEduSat-1. A seventh satellite, DELSAT-1 may also be on course.
However, Nigeria’s space venture faces several handicaps, including limited funding, weak regulatory frameworks and the challenge of attracting and retaining space talents. Added to the foregoing is that the country’s space programme is heavily dependent on foreign technology and expertise, with the attendant need for increased public awareness and deeper local content.
Meanwhile, from a needs perspective, the imperative for accelerated indegenisation of its space ventures cannot be overemphasised.
In the same vein, this is congratulations to Owolabi Salis, Nigeria’s worthy space ambassador.