Serhat Yuksel, 18, and Onur Yuksel, 17, came second in the NASA Space Apps Challenge for their project of producing oxygen from the soil in Mars.

The Yuksels took a flight from capital Ankara via Istanbul to London.

National flag carrier Turkish Airlines and the Anatolia People and Peace Platform (AHBAP) sponsored them. 

The brothers’ family, as well as members of AHBAP in Ankara, bid them farewell at the airport. 

Turkish singer Haluk Levent, who is also the founder of AHBAP, spoke to the Yuksel brothers in a video call.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Levent said that AHBAP was only a link between the sponsors and the Yuksels to make their dreams true.

“We have founded AHBAP for solidarity, for such things. Now those kids are like my cousins, I feel so close [to them],” he said.