Malaysia's first astronaut was to blast off today on a space voyage seen as breaking new boundaries for the Asian nation and for space travel by Muslims.

Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor was to lift off from the Baikonur cosmodrome at 1322 GMT (9.22pm Malaysian time) in a Russian Soyuz rocket headed for the International Space Station (ISS) with Russian cosmonaut Yury Malenchenko and American Peggy Whitson.

He is to spend about nine days on the ISS, arriving at the orbiting station near the end of the holy month of Ramadan and staying there for the Aidil Fitri festival, when he will treat the long-term crew to festive Malaysian food.

Malaysian officials have described the voyage as a national milestone as their country marks 50 years of independence.

Muszaphar, a 35-year-old doctor who has undergone extensive astronaut training, has said he hopes to inspire Malaysians to further space achievements and that Malaysia should have its own spacecraft by 2020.

He is due to conduct scientific experiments on behalf of Malaysia's Genome Institute, including tests on cancer cells to be transported on the Soyuz.

'I feel great'

He has also said he will try to observe the fasting rules of Ramadan and that he hopes to get closer to God and share his experiences with other Muslims.

"I feel great. I just can't wait to go up -for the Malaysian people," Muszaphar told AFP as he headed for the launch pad after being helped into his spacesuit

In Baikonur to see off their son, Muszaphar's parents said it was a proud day for them and for the Malaysian people.

"I pray that he will be well and will come back as well as ever," said his mother, Zuraida Sheikh Ahmad.

His father, Sheikh Mustapha Shukor, said: "It's a terrific, historical moment for all of us, tremendous. We pray for him."

Religious guidelines

He is one of very few Muslims who have travelled to space. Malaysian religious authorities have prepared guidelines adapting religious rules to life on the ISS, which circles the earth 16 times per calendar day, meaning that without adapting the rules he would be obliged to pray 80 times in 24 hours.

The guidelines say that the astronaut need only pray five times a day and that the times should follow the location from which the spacecraft blasted off.

The visit has been arranged as part of a billion-dollar purchase by Malaysia of Russian fighter jets, Russia being the operator of the Baikonur cosmodrome in ex-Soviet Kazakhstan.

Russia has launched about 1,800 Soyuz rockets in various adaptations and technical staff were confident the launch would pass without a hitch.

This month is the 50th anniversary of the start of modern space travel, which dates from the Soviet Union's launch on October 4, 1957 of the first ever satellite, Sputnik 1, from Baikonur.