Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor Al Masrie bin Sheikh Mustapha (born 27 July 1972) is the first Malaysian

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

. He launched to the

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA ...

aboard

Soyuz TMA-11 Soyuz TMA-11 was a human spaceflight mission using a Soyuz-TMA spacecraft to transport personnel to and from the International Space Station (ISS). The mission began at 13:22 UTC on October 10, 2007, when the spacecraft was launched from the ...

with the

Expedition 16 Expedition 16 was the 16th expedition to the International Space Station (ISS). The first two crew members, Yuri Malenchenko and Peggy Whitson, launched on 10 October 2007, aboard Soyuz TMA-11, and were joined by spaceflight participant Sheikh ...

crew on 10 October 2007. Sheikh Muszaphar flew under an agreement with Russia through the

Angkasawan program The ''Angkasawan program'' was an initiative by the Malaysian government to send a Malaysian to the International Space Station on board Soyuz TMA-11. The program was named after the Malay word for astronaut, ''Angkasawan''. It resulted in Sheik ...

, and returned to Earth on 21 October 2007, aboard

Soyuz TMA-10 Soyuz TMA-10 was a human spaceflight mission using a Soyuz-TMA spacecraft to transport personnel to and from the International Space Station (ISS). The mission began at 17:31:09 UTC on April 7, 2007 when the spacecraft was launched from the Ba ...

with the

Expedition 15 Expedition 15 was the 15th expedition to the International Space Station (ISS). Four crew members participated in the expedition, although for most of the expedition's duration only three were on the station at any one time. During Expedition 15, ...

crew members,

Fyodor Yurchikhin Fyodor Nikolayevich Yurchikhin (russian: Фёдор Николаевич Юрчихин, Greek: Θεόδωρος Γιουρτσίχιν του Νικόλαου; born 3 January 1959) is a Russian cosmonaut of Greek descent, engineer and RSC Ene ...

and

Oleg Kotov Oleg Valeriyevich Kotov (russian: Олег Валериевич Котов) was born on 27 October 1965 in Simferopol, Crimean oblast in the Ukrainian SSR. After a career as a physician assigned to the Soviet space program, he joined the Russian ...

Career

Sheikh Muszaphar was born in

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

, the son of Ustaz Muhaidin. He is of

Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...

Minangkabau Minangkabau may refer to: * Minangkabau culture, culture of the Minangkabau people * Minangkabau Culture Documentation and Information Center * Minangkabau Express, an airport rail link service serving Minangkabau International Airport (''see belo ...

and

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

descent. He attended high school at

Maktab Rendah Sains MARA The MARA Junior Science College (MJSC) ( ms, Maktab Rendah Sains MARA (MRSM)) is a group of boarding schools created by Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Majlis Amanah Rakyat, MARA), a Malaysian government agency. The institution provides learning facil ...

in Muar. He then earned a

Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United Kin ...

degree from

Kasturba Medical College Kasturba Medical College, Manipal and Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore, together known as KMC, are two private medical colleges in coastal Karnataka, India, established in 1953.Manipal University Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) is a private deemed university located in Manipal, India. The university also has campuses in Mangalore, Bangalore and Jamshedpur in India , and global campus in Dubai and Malacca (Malaysia). As of ...

, in

Manipal Manipal is a suburb and university town within Udupi, in coastal Karnataka, India. Manipal is located five kilometres away from the centre of Udupi City, in Udupi District, Karnataka (state) in south western India. It is administered by the Udup ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Sheikh Muszaphar previously worked as an orthopaedic medical officer (MO) but never completed his specialisation. at the

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia The National University of Malaysia ( ms, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, abbreviated as UKM) is a public university located in Bandar Baru Bangi, Hulu Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia. Its teaching hospital, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia ...

. In 1998, Sheikh Muszaphar worked at Hospital Seremban, followed by a move to Kuala Lumpur General Hospital in 1999, and was on staff at Hospital Selayang from 2000 through 2001. Sheikh Muszaphar is also a part-time model.

Angkasawan program

Sheikh Muszaphar and three other finalists were selected at the beginning of 2006 for the Malaysian Angkasawan spaceflight program. The program arose after Russia agreed to transport one Malaysian to the ISS as part of a multi-billion purchase of 18 Russian

Sukhoi Su-30 The Sukhoi Su-30 (russian: Сухой Су-30; NATO reporting name: Flanker-C/G/H) is a twin-engine, two-seat supermaneuverable fighter aircraft developed in the Soviet Union by Russia's Sukhoi Aviation Corporation. It is a multirole fighte ...

MKM fighter jets by Malaysia. After completing initial training at Star City in Russia, Sheikh Muszaphar and

Faiz Khaleed Faiz bin Khaleed (born September 15, 1980 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) is a Malaysian military dentist with the Malaysian Armed Forces. In September 2006, he was selected as one of two final candidates to undergo astronaut training in Star City ...

were selected to undergo an 18-month training program in Russia, at the end of which Sheikh Muszaphar was chosen as the prime crew member, while Faiz Khaleed served as back-up. Following the final medical tests and training examinations, on 17 September, it was announced that Sheikh Muszaphar would be flying on the Soyuz TMA-11 mission. During a

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

news conference with the

crew on 23 July 2007, and news conferences following his selection, Sheikh Muszaphar said he hoped to be able to take various live cell cultures to study during his flight.

Terminology

Flying as a guest of the Russian government, Sheikh Muszaphar's role aboard Soyuz and the ISS is referred to as a

spaceflight participant Spaceflight participant (russian: участник космического полета, translit=uchastnik kosmicheskogo polyota) is the term used by NASA, Roscosmos, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for people who travel into space, ...

in English-language

Russian Federal Space Agency The State Space Corporation "Roscosmos" (russian: Государственная корпорация по космической деятельности «Роскосмос»), commonly known simply as Roscosmos (russian: Роскосмос) ...

and

documents and press briefings. Speaking to Malaysian media outlets, Alexander Karchava, the Russian ambassador to Malaysia, stated that Sheikh Muszaphar is a "fully-fledged

cosmonaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

". In an interview with the Malaysian Star newspaper, Robert Gibson, a retired NASA astronaut, shared his opinion that Sheikh Muszaphar is fully qualified as an astronaut, and as such, he should be called one. Gibson also said he regarded Sheikh Muszaphar as a peer.

Spaceflight

carrying Whitson, Malenchenko, and Sheikh Muszaphar, successfully launched at 13:22 UTC, Wednesday, 10 October 2007. After 10 days in space, Sheikh Muszaphar boarded

for his return. TMA-10 undocked from the ISS at 07:14 UTC on 21 October, and deorbit occurred at 09:47. During

atmospheric re-entry Atmospheric entry is the movement of an object from outer space into and through the gases of an atmosphere of a planet, dwarf planet, or natural satellite. There are two main types of atmospheric entry: ''uncontrolled entry'', such as the entr ...

, the spacecraft transitioned to a

ballistic reentry Atmospheric entry is the movement of an object from outer space into and through the gases of an atmosphere of a planet, dwarf planet, or natural satellite. There are two main types of atmospheric entry: ''uncontrolled entry'', such as the ...

, resulting in it landing west of

Arkalyk Arkalyk ( kz, Arqalyq; cyrl, Арқалық, russian: Аркалык) is a city in Kostanay Region, northern Kazakhstan. Earlier, it was the centre of Torgay Region, which was abolished in 1997. Today, it is the administrative centre of Torgay Di ...

, approximately northwest of the intended

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

landing site. The trajectory was reported by the crew as soon as they came out of the

communications blackout In telecommunications, communications blackouts are * a cessation of communications or communications capability, caused by a lack of power to a communications facility or to communications equipment. * a total lack of radio communications capab ...

caused by plasma surrounding the spacecraft. A ballistic trajectory is a backup re-entry mode that takes over if something fails during normal re-entry. A Commission of Inquiry determined that the ballistic re-entry was caused by damage to a cable in the spacecraft's control panel, which connected the control panel with the Soyuz descent equipment. Landing occurred at 10:36 GMT, the duration of his flight is 10d 20h 14m.

Space experiments

Sheikh Muszaphar performed experiments on board the International Space Station relating to the characteristics and growth of liver cancer and

leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ' ...

cells, the crystallisation of various proteins and microbes in space. The experiments relating to liver cancer, leukaemia cells and microbes will benefit general science and

medical research Medical research (or biomedical research), also known as experimental medicine, encompasses a wide array of research, extending from "basic research" (also called ''bench science'' or ''bench research''), – involving fundamental scientif ...

, while the experiments relating to the crystallisation of proteins, lipases in this case, will directly benefit local industries.

Lipase Lipase ( ) is a family of enzymes that catalyzes the hydrolysis of fats. Some lipases display broad substrate scope including esters of cholesterol, phospholipids, and of lipid-soluble vitamins and sphingomyelinases; however, these are usually tr ...

are a type of protein enzymes used in the manufacturing of a diverse range of products from textiles to cosmetics, and the opportunity to grow these in space will mean a possibility for Malaysian scientists to take a crack at an industry worth some US$2.2bil (MYR7.7bil) worldwide by producing these locally.

Spaceflight and religion

Since Sheikh Muszaphar is a

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

, and as his time in space coincided with the last part of

Ramadan , type = islam , longtype = Religious , image = Ramadan montage.jpg , caption=From top, left to right: A crescent moon over Sarıçam, Turkey, marking the beginning of the Islamic month of Ramadan. Ramadan Quran reading in Bandar Torkaman, Iran. ...

, the Islamic

National Fatwa Council Islam in Malaysia is represented by the Shafi‘i school of Sunni jurisprudence.

drew up the first comprehensive guidebook for Muslims in space. The 18-page guidebook is titled ''"Guidelines for Performing Islamic Rites (

Ibadah ''Ibadah'' ( ar, , ''‘ibādah'', also spelled ''ibada'') is an Arabic word meaning service or servitude. In Islam, ''ibadah'' is usually translated as "worship", and ''ibadat''—the plural form of ''ibadah''—refers to Islamic jurispru ...

) at the International Space Station"'', and details issues such as how to

pray Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deified an ...

in a low-gravity environment, how to locate Mecca from the ISS, how to determine prayer times, and issues surrounding fasting. The orbit of the ISS results in one day/night cycle every 90 minutes, so the issues of fasting during Ramadan are also addressed. Sheikh Muszaphar celebrated

Eid ul-Fitr , nickname = Festival of Breaking the Fast, Lesser Eid, Sweet Eid, Sugar Feast , observedby = Muslims , type = Islamic , longtype = Islamic , significance = Commemoration to mark the end of fasting in Ramadan , dat ...

aboard the station, and packed some

satay Satay ( , in USA also , ), or sate in Indonesian spelling, is a Southeast Asian dish of seasoned, skewered and grilled meat, served with a sauce. The earliest preparations of satay is believed to have originated in Javanese cuisine, but ha ...

and cookies to hand out to the rest of the crew on 13 October 2007 to mark the end of Ramadan.

Legacy

In honour of Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor being the first Malaysian astronaut sent into space, the

2008 ASEAN University Games ) , host_city = Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia , nations = 10 , debuting_countries = , athletes = 1789 , events = 219 in 21 sports , opening = 11 December , closing = 21 December , ope ...

organising committee had chosen an astronaut as the games mascot, which is named A1 Angkasawan.

Honours

Honours of Malaysia

* : **

Knight Companion of The Most Esteemed

Order of Loyalty to Negeri Sembilan Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

(DSNS) - Dato' (2008)

References

External links

Spacefacts biography of Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor

Malaysia's first astronaut to do what no one in space has done before

Interview with Sheikh Muszaphar from the ISS

Nils Fischer “Islamic religious practice in outer space.” ISIM review (2008) 22: 39.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shukor, Muszaphar Living people 1972 births People from Kuala Lumpur Malaysian people of Arab descent Malaysian people of Malay descent Minangkabau people Malaysian people of Minangkabau descent Malaysian Muslims Malaysian orthopaedic surgeon Malaysian astronauts Manipal Academy of Higher Education alumni MARA Junior Science College alumni Mars One Physician astronauts Spaceflight participants