Ramadan In Space, How Are Muslim Astronauts Fasting And Prayer?

JAKARTA - United Arab Emirates (UAE) astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi will spend the entire month of Ramadan on the International Space Station (ISS) this year, how do you keep worshiping as a Muslim?

Usually, a Muslim will fast from sunrise to sunset during the month of Ramadan. However, it is not mandatory when they travel.

Dr. Al Neyadi, who will spend six months in space and launch on February 26, said the rules also apply to astronauts.

Based on current calculations, this year's Ramadan is expected to start around March 23, meaning Eid is expected to take place between April 20 and April 23.

"For six months, we will go through very exciting times such as Eid al-Fitr and Ramadan," said Dr. Al Neyadi, as quoted by The National News January 13.

"I'm in the definition of an immigrant, and we can actually break the fast and it's not mandatory," he continued.

"And actually fasting is not mandatory if you are not feeling well. Eating foods that are quite allowed if you lack food, nutrition or dehydration can endanger the mission, or may harm the crew members," he said.

However, he said, if he had the opportunity, he would perform some fasting, and would share food with his colleagues on the space station.

So, what are the references for praying and breaking the fast while he is in space? For fasting and praying in space, astronauts can follow the time zone used on the space station, namely UTC, also called GMT. Or, they can keep up with the prayer time in Makkah.

Dr. Al Neyadi was not the first Muslim to spend Ramadan in space. Prince Sultan bin Salman of Saudi Arabia was the first Muslim in space when he flew the US space shuttle Discovery in 1985.

At that time, he fasted on the day he was launched into space, which is the last day of Ramadan.

In his book 'Seven Days in Space', he spoke broadly about carrying out his obligations as a Muslim during his training and time in space.

He talked about eating sahur, on take off days, praying at the launch tower before boarding the spacecraft, fasting while in space and reading the Qur'an.

"Now I feel quite tired, maybe due to lack of sleep, weightlessness, and loss of body fluids," he wrote in the book.

"I really feel dehydrated. I have one more hour until I can break the fast. The rest of the crew should have been sleeping at the time, but they have decided to stay with me until I break the fast. It's a beautiful feeling," he recalled.

He also spent Eid al-Fitr on a shuttle. He said he was "very happy" to spend a special day in space, that he would "celebrate it in my own way".

He spoke about how his American counterpart John Fabian prayed for him well, when Saudi Arabia announced that the crescent moon had been visible, marking the end of Ramadan and the beginning of Eid al-Fitr.

Prince Salman has a special menu on the shuttle, including sweet acid chicken, boiled sweet corn, cauliflower cheese, tuna salads, pasta, shrimp, salmon, fried chicken, hot chocolate, fruits and vegetables, as well as caffeineless coffee and tea.

The astronaut also shared a photo of himself praying and reading the Qur'an in space.

Separately, Malaysian astronaut Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor also spent several days of Ramadan in space in 2007.

He launched on a Russian Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome space base in Kazakhstan.

"Islam is not burdensome. If I can't fast in space, I can pay for it and do it at other times," said Shukor a few weeks before its launch.

Reportedly he held a "Idulfitri party" in space for his colleagues. He brought some Malaysian satay, or a spicy meat slice satay and a pastries with him.

The UAE's first astronaut, Hazza Al Mansouri, who spent eight days on the ISS in 2019, recorded himself praying while in space.

The menu on the ISS is a traditional Emirati dish, including balaleet (Emirati's staple food in the form of sweet bihun served with chicken eggs on it), salona ( chicken mouth) and madrooba (cold thick oil).

A group photo featuring astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi with his colleagues from the International Space Station's crew. The ISS hosts currently 11 astronauts including AlNeyadi, who is carrying out the longest Arab space mission in history.#TheLongestArabSpaceMission pic.twitter.com/uLP6dbxKLC

— MBR Space Centre (@MBRSpaceCentre) March 10, 2023