After a life of more than 100 years.. the death of Kuwaiti astronomer Saleh Al-Ajiri

Kuwait-

Astronomy in Kuwait and the Arab world has turned one of its most important pages, with the passing of astronomer and mathematician Dr. Saleh Al-Ajiri, who passed away on Thursday, February 10.

Kuwait,

, buried Dr. Al-Ajairi to his final resting place at the age of 101, after a journey full of giving and achievements.

Al-Ajiri was born on June 23, 1921, in the “Qibla” neighborhood and lived a simple life. His mother died when he was not more than 12 years old. This reflected on his life, as he took responsibility for taking care of his four brothers. So, he embodied the series "Al-Dakhtar Al-Amerikani".

After that, he experienced acting with theater giants in 1938, and formed with the late Muhammad Al-Nashmi a successful duet, but he turned the page of acting from his life and did not continue it.

He began his education at the age of four in a simple "Kuttab" and at the age of nine he joined the regular school, and because of his father's desire to become a merchant, he joined the Al-Mulla Murshid National School known for teaching commercial sciences, before he finished his education at the Mubarakiya School in 1943, where he completed his studies until the grade Secondary secondary.

Al-Ujairi a long journey with astronomy (Kuwaiti press)

His career with astronomy

His journey with astronomy began when he was young, although he was afraid of natural phenomena such as the sound of thunder, flashes of lightning, wind, darkness, and all that is natural from various phenomena.

His father sent him to one of the tribes in the desert south of Jahra to learn horsemanship and archery, and get used to the harsh life. Hajji is the founder of astronomy in Kuwait, and on his hands he received his lessons through an old instrument called the “Al-Rub’ al-Mujib”.

He traveled to Egypt, from where he obtained a certificate of specialization in astronomy from the Egyptian Astronomical Union in 1952. He also visited a number of foreign countries to benefit from their various sciences, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany and France, in addition to his participation in many scientific conferences specialized in science and astronomy.

Al-Ujairi (third from the right) made a great effort to raise the level of astronomy (Kuwaiti press)

bus rally

Al-Ajiri's practical career began in teaching, but he could not continue, so he turned to commercial work. He worked as an accountant for 42 months, and eventually joined the government job in order to save time for practicing his hobby.

Al-Ajiri made a great effort to raise the level of astronomy in his country, through the books he wrote, lectures, seminars, and conferences in which he participated.

He has many achievements, the most important of which is the establishment of the “Al-Ujairi Calendar” in 1952, which was distinguished by its accuracy and is still printed annually to this day. The state has adopted it in its official transactions, and it is a calendar that is printed in a number of Arab and foreign countries.

And the "Al-Ujairi calendar" - in accordance with the decision of the Council of Ministers in 2006 - became the official calendar of the state, at the level of calculating times, new moons and astronomical phenomena. It was also considered the main scientific reference for other calendars, thanks to its accuracy and professionalism.

He also opened the famous Al-Ujairi Library in 1973 in the Hawally area.

And he built an astronomical observatory at his own expense in the early seventies, and at this time he cooperated with the Scientific Club, and culminated in building the "Al-Ujairi Observatory" at the club's headquarters, and the "Al-Ujairi Astronomical Museum", which was opened on August 5, 2013 and contains a library containing his most important books and achievements.

Al-Ujairi Museum is one of the scientific museums specialized in the field of astronomy in the Arab world.

It also provides a cinema hall, the first in the Gulf, which is the 360-degree "planetary dome", in which a group of documentaries in Arabic and English about space flights and the story of the landing of the first astronaut on the moon are shown.

Al-Ajiri's funeral for his last resting place after a journey full of giving (Kuwaiti press)

Scientific Center

As the culmination of a busy scientific career, the Al-Ujairi Scientific Center for Research and Development in the field of astronomy and space sciences was announced last December.

The center's vision is to create an environment that incubates astronomical creativity, develop this science, and maintain the continuity of its march in Kuwait, through the center's tasks, which include astronomical calculations, calculating times and new moons, issuing and publishing calendars, providing scientific advice, and organizing related conferences.

Dr. Al-Ujairi left many books that influenced the Arabic library, including “Calendar of the Centuries to meet the Hijri and Gregorian dates, the crescent cycle, time scheduling, the old and new calendar, timings and qiblah, guiding the stars in Kuwait, timings, astronomical lessons for beginners, how to calculate eclipses and eclipses, Hijri calendar and how to calculate the centuries calendar, map of the brightest stars in the sky, Halley's comet, wall calendar.

The late received many awards due to his numerous and distinguished contributions in the fields of science and astronomy, such as an honorary doctorate in science from Kuwait University in 1981, the Collaboration Council for Science in 1988, the State Appreciation Award in 2005, honorary membership in the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space Sciences in 2000, in addition to many Local and Arab prizes.