Marcos Cesar Pontes
Marcos Cesar Pontes is a Brazilian Air Force pilot, engineer, astronaut, and public official who became the first Brazilian citizen in space. His single spaceflight was a short-duration Soyuz visit to the International .
- Born
- March 11, 1963
- Died
- N/A
- Birthplace
- Bauru, São Paulo,Brazil
Flights
1
Spacewalks
N/A
EVA time
N/A
In space
9 days, 21 hours, 17 minutes
Bio
Pontes trained as a Brazilian military pilot and aeronautical engineer before being selected for astronaut training. He worked with NASA after Brazil's involvement in the International Space Station program and later trained for a Soyuz flight through Russia.
He launched aboard Soyuz TMA-8 in March 2006 and returned aboard Soyuz TMA-7 after the Missão Centenário visit to the ISS. During the mission he carried out Brazilian experiments and outreach tied to the centennial of Alberto Santos-Dumont's 14-bis flight.
After spaceflight, Pontes became an important public figure in Brazil, including service as Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation.