ASTRONAUT

Marcos Pontes

1963 - Today

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Marcos Cesar Pontes (born 11 March 1963) is a Brazilian Air Force pilot, engineer, AEB astronaut, politician and author. He became the first South American and the first Lusophone to go into space when he docked onto the International Space Station aboard Soyuz TMA-8 on 30 March 2006. He is the only Brazilian to have completed the NASA astronaut training program, although he switched to training in Russia after NASA's Space Shuttle program encountered problems. After Jair Bolsonaro's election as President of Brazil in 2018, Pontes was officially nominated to be Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, a post which he accepted days later and assumed when Bolsonaro's government began. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Marcos Pontes is the 282nd most popular astronaut (down from 219th in 2019), the 780th most popular biography from Brazil (down from 711th in 2019) and the most popular Brazilian Astronaut.

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Among ASTRONAUTS

Among astronauts, Marcos Pontes ranks 282 out of 556. Before him are Yury Usachov, Akihiko Hoshide, Robert L. Stewart, John Oliver Creighton, Steven R. Nagel, and Brewster H. Shaw. After him are Norman Thagard, Fei Junlong, Jean-Jacques Favier, Franz Viehböck, Pamela Melroy, and Vasily Tsibliyev.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1963, Marcos Pontes ranks 410. Before him are Viktar Babaryka, Milan Luhový, Lori Petty, Rand Paul, Candan Erçetin, and Stefan Pettersson. After him are Li Shufu, Kira Ivanova, David LaChapelle, Hiroaki Hirata, Gavin Hood, and Florence Parly.

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In Brazil

Among people born in Brazil, Marcos Pontes ranks 780 out of 2,236. Before him are Digão (1985), Júlio César Leal (1951), Falcão (1977), Leandro Domingues (1983), Lucas Paquetá (1997), and Deili Custodio da Silva (1980). After him are Adriana Esteves (1969), Dudu Cearense (1983), Charles Oliveira (1989), Carlinhos Júnior (1994), Osmar Donizete Cândido (1968), and Vik Muniz (1961).

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Among ASTRONAUTS In Brazil

Among astronauts born in Brazil, Marcos Pontes ranks 1. 

Brazilian born Astronauts

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