| SPACE TRAVEL | SPACE DAILY | SPACE WAR | TERRA DAILY | MARS DAILY | SPACE MART | GPS DAILY | ENERGY DAILY |
 |
Kuala Lumpur (AFP) May 20, 2007 Malaysia's first space travellers will head to NASA in the United States next month for further training after their current stint in Russia ends, news reports said Sunday. Science Minister Jamaluddin Jarjis said the two candidates will be with NASA in Texas for up to three weeks, as part of the Malaysian Astronaut Programme, according to the Star daily. "The International Space Station has two portions, the Russian and American, so they have to receive training from both sides," Jarjis was quoted as saying by the Star. Malaysia's first astronaut and a back-up candidate, chosen from thousands of hopefuls in a nationwide contest, are currently undergoing training at Moscow's Star City before heading into space on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft in October. Jarjis said the government had yet to pick either Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, 34, a doctor and part-time model, and Faiz Khaleed, 26, an army dentist, as the final candidate to blast off into space. They will head to NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) in June. The astronaut project was conceived in 2003 when Russia agreed to send a Malaysian to the space station as part of a billion-dollar purchase of 18 Sukhoi 30-MKM fighter jets. As part of their contract, neither Muzaphar and Faiz is allowed to marry until the mission concludes in 2008.
Source: Agence France-Presse Email This Article
Related Links 
Washington DC (SPX) May 21, 2007The House Committee on Science and Technology's Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics today examined a range of National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) workforce issues identified by the recently released reports of two independent review panels. The Subcommittee's work is aimed at ensuring the health and vitality of the NASA workforce in the 21st century. |
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |
