SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP) - Brazilian
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva welcomed the return
of Brazil's first astronaut to Earth on Sunday, praising his accomplishments in
space.
Marcos
Pontes landed in the freezing steppe in Kazakhstan on Sunday after a visit
to the International Space Station.
"In the name of the
Brazilian Air Force, the Science and Technology Ministry and the Brazilian
people, I would like to welcome astronaut Marcos Pontes in his return home,''
Silva said in a statement. "The extraordinary success of his mission ... is a
motive of great satisfaction for us.''
The 43-year-old lieutenant
colonel was featured daily on Brazilian TV news broadcasts and in newspaper
pages since blasting
into space aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket on March 29. The Brazilian
flag he waved in the capsule was seen as a symbol of pride to most
Brazilians.
"His dedication and his
sympathy were notable,'' Silva said. "He has become one of the greatest
personalities of our country.''
Pontes, a Brazilian Air Force
fighter pilot, joined the 15 nations involved in the space station project in
1997. A year later he was picked for the flight by NASA and the Brazilian Space
Agency.
Pontes' trip was met with criticism
by some Brazilians because it reportedly cost the Brazilian Space Agency US$10
million (euro8.2 million).
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