BRAZIL'S FIRST ASTRONAUT BLASTED OFF FROM EARTH INTO A CLEAR BLUE SKY ON THURSDAY WITH A RUSSIAN-U.S. CREW BOUND FOR THE ORBITING INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION, REUTERS REPORTED. MARCOS PONTES, A 43-YEAR-OLD BRAZILIAN AIR FORCE PILOT, WAS HUNCHED INSIDE THE SPACECRAFT WITH RUSSIAN COSMONAUT PAVEL VINOGRADOV AND U.S. ASTRONAUT JEFFREY WILLIAMS, BOTH OF WHOM WERE STARTING A SIX-MONTH ROTATION IN SPACE. 'EVERYTHING IS GOOD. MARCOS IS IN SPACE,' A RUSSIAN OFFICIAL TOLD THE BRAZILIAN'S WIFE, FATIMA, WHO WAS WATCHING THE DAWN LAUNCH FROM A VIEWING PLATFORM AT THE BAIKONUR COSMODROME ON THE WINDSWEPT KAZAKH STEPPE. ONBOARD CAMERAS SHOWED PONTES, WHO HAD A WINDOW SEAT, GIVING A THUMBS-UP. 'I AM VERY EMOTIONAL. I CANNOT EVEN EXPLAIN HOW I FEEL RIGHT NOW. I AM VERY, VERY HAPPY,' HIS WIFE SAID, WITH TEARS IN HER EYES. PONTES, WHO PACKED A BRAZILIAN SOCCER TEAM SHIRT, RETURNS TO EARTH IN 10 DAYS WITH THE OUTGOING CREW, AMERICAN BILL MCARTHUR AND RUSSIAN VALERY TOKAREV. THE RUSSIAN SOYUZ TMA ROCKET TOOK OFF AT 0230 GMT WITH A ROAR POWERFUL ENOUGH TO BE FELT A KILOMETRE FROM THE COSMODROME, WHICH IS RENTED BY RUSSIA FROM ITS EX-SOVIET CENTRAL ASIAN NEIGHBOUR. ITS DESTINATION, THE SPACE STATION, WAS FLYING OVER THE WESTERN PACIFIC OCEAN AT THE TIME OF THE LAUNCH, A NASA OFFICIAL SAID. THE SOYUZ IS SCHEDULED TO DOCK IN TWO DAYS' TIME.
