On 15 December 2015, Tim Peake blasted off in a Soyuz rocket to begin his journey to become the first official British astronaut to visit the International Space Station.
The father-of-two, from Chichester, West Sussex, would take part in more than 250 scientific experiments during an eventful six-month mission on the ISS, which orbits the Earth from an altitude of approximately 250 miles.
Since being selected as an astronaut by the European Space Agency in 2009, the former British Army test pilot had dreamed of one day walking in space – an endeavour regarded by many as being the pinnacle of spaceflight.
“When I launched to space I desperately wanted to do a spacewalk but you’re never guaranteed one,” says Major Peake during a new Sky News podcast which tells the story of Britain’s first spacewalk. “I was fortunate something had broken on one of the solar panels so we had to go out and replace it.”
A spacewalk would offer the opportunity to absorb a breathtaking view of the Earth enjoyed by only a handful of people in human history, but it was not without dangers and there was serious work to be done once Major Peake had left the safety of the airlock.
“We had to go to the very furthest edge, carrying this component the size of a small fridge… if something does go wrong you have limited time to put it right. If I’d ripped one of my gloves more than 6mm that was it, game over, the suit cannot maintain enough pressure to keep you alive… so you’re constantly aware of where you are putting your hands.”
On 15 January 2016, the moment Major Peake had been dreaming about arrived as he became the first official British astronaut to walk in space.
“You’re looking down on this beautiful blue planet, the amount of water just strikes you on planet Earth when you see it from space, reflecting all this wonderful sunlight. Things are constantly changing – sunrises and sunsets are magical to see as well. It’s an awe-inspiring view.”
The astronaut considers the spacewalk to be the finest moment of his career and hopes to venture out into space again one day to complete another one.
Listen to Major Peake talk about his journey to space and completing the spacewalk in the latest episode of StoryCast ’21, a Sky News podcast series telling 21 stories from the year 2000 to 2021.
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StoryCast ’21 is telling 21 personal stories from some of the biggest news events of the century.
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