The Egyptian Graduate Research Assistant at the Caltech Institute, Ahmed Soliman, spent two days inside a tent in -50 degrees weather in the South Pole.
Soliman is also a research assistant at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).
He has been in the South Pole for the last four months as part of a scientific mission to discover the first moment of the universe.
Researchers usually spend a period of time inside the tent at the end of their scientific missions, similar to the experiment of the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen.
Amundsen is famous for his image in the South Pole near his tent with the national flag.
Soliman told Asharq Al-Awsat that the optimal time for this experiment is in December, when the temperature in the Antarctic is 30 below zero, which is an acceptable temperature for this place.
He explained that the temperature would be 50 below zero, and many researchers do not prefer to go through the experiment at this time of the year.
The Antarctic Research Center provides a tent similar to Amundsen's, which is made of reinforced leather and lined with cotton to prevent any cold air from entering. It also contains suitable covers on the ground, making it possible to stay in the tent when the temperature reaches -50 degrees outside.
Soliman explained that the researcher has to set the tent, and the Research Center provides wireless communication for emergencies to request assistance if needed.
The researcher must also declare the date of his return, and if he is late, it indicates that he encountered issues, and the paramedics will head his way for assistance.
Despite the potential dangers he could encounter, Soliman wanted to experience the adventure, which he described as "very special and unique."
He is the first Arab Muslim to stay at the location where explorers first set foot 110 years ago.
Soliman recalled that he spent most of his time praying and reading the Quran. He especially repeated verse 90 from Surah al-Kahf: "Until when he reached the land of the rising of the sun, he found it rising on a people to whom We had given no shelter from It."
The experiment comes at the conclusion of a research mission that included several researchers from various US universities.
They seek to research the universe's origins by monitoring the cosmic microwave background (CMB), the leftover radiation from the Big Bang, or the time when the universe began.
The CMB represents the heat leftover from the Big Bang.
