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Malaysia cheers historic space odyssey
Kuala Lumpur (AFP) Oct 22, 2007 The return of Malaysia's first ever astronaut from space was hailed by the deputy premier as a historic moment that made his countrymen "stand a few inches taller," reports said Monday. Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, a 35-year-old doctor and part-time model, returned to Earth on Sunday at 1043 GMT after 11 days in space. Muszaphar and two Russian cosmonauts touched down safely in Kazakhstan but 200 kilometres (120 miles) off-target in a rare and unexplained 'ballistic landing' by the Soyuz craft. Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak followed the landing from the Russian mission control centre in Moscow. "This is a very momentous and historic occasion for Malaysia. It will go down in the annals of our history because this is a first for Malaysia in space and he has returned safely," Najib said in the New Straits Times. Muszaphar, whose parents were among the cheering Malaysian contingent at mission control, spoke to his father over a borrowed mobile phone. "Abah (father in the Malay language), it's Mus. I'm back safe and sound. Everything's fine," his father, Sheikh Mustapha Abdul Shukor, recounted to the paper. Muszaphar was chosen from thousands of hopefuls in a nationwide competition that generated tremendous excitement in Malaysia. Malaysian leaders see the space flight as a milestone for the country which is marking a half-century of independence from British colonial rule, and are mulling sending another citizen into space. Najib said the government has until the end of 2009 to decide if it wants to accept an offer from the Russian Space Agency for another Malaysian to journey to the International Space Station (ISS) in late 2010 or early 2011. Muszaphar's trip was part of a billion-dollar purchase of 18 Sukhoi 30-MKM fighter jets from Russia but Najib said a second space mission will involve direct financing. "Since the next expedition would involve public funds, the government would have to convince the public of the need of the mission," Najib said. The Malaysian astronaut trained for over a year at Moscow's Star City before he left for the mission on October 10 with American Peggy Whitson, the new commander on the ISS, and a Russian Yuri Malenchenko. Muszaphar, a practising Muslim, celebrated the end of the holy month of Ramadan at the space station and carried out experiments for Malaysia's Genome Institute. Related Links Space Tourism, Space Transport and Space Exploration News
First Stop Moon. Next Stop, Mars
Vienna, Austria (SPX) Oct 19, 2007The distant red planet Mars has captured the imagination of humankind for generations. It has inspired novelists to write stories about its exploration and motivated scientists to find ways to make space travel there a viable possibility. Now, for the first time in Europe, scholars such as historians, philosophers and sociologists are banding together with space scientists to share their thoughts and ideas on how humankind will be taking these first steps. |
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