Swindon Advertiser Weekly Article - 18th December

It was lift off for Major Tim this week as the former Wiltshire resident blasted off into space and became the first British astronaut to board the International Space Station.

The former Army aviator and helicopter pilot left the space base in Kazakhstan on Tuesday for a six hour trip to the Space Station. He will be spending an intense six months developing software that will monitor the mental well-being of astronauts who spend long periods of time in space – something particularly important as space agencies look towards future ambitions and lengthy missions to Mars. On top of all this, Tim will also be taking part in the London marathon next year as he aims to run the 26 miles aboard the ISS! 

Of course this was also major news for Swindon, home of the UK Space Agency, which is based in Polaris House and is at the centre of the UK’s efforts to explore and benefit from space. The Agency handles a budget worth over £300 million and contributes £9.1 billion a year to the UK economy, employing 28,900 people across the country. It is incredible that Swindon is at the heart of such a thriving sector.

Throughout Tim’s mission, also known as Principia, the UK Space Agency will be running a £3 million programme of education and outreach activities, which will aim to bring the excitement of space to classrooms across the UK and other venues in order to encourage interest in STEM subjects. School activities which the Agency has launched to coincide with Tim’s work will cover a range of inspiring, curriculum-linked topics, covering everything from computer coding, growing plants and science/maths demonstrations to fitness, nutrition, art and design.

All of these ambitious plans for learning are inspiring future generations and are crucially being formulated right here in our town. This is in addition to the £2 billion worth of research grants which are handed out from the Research Councils. Swindon is well and truly at the heart of research, space and innovation, and we should be exceptionally proud that our town is making such a valuable contribution to the UK’s global standing.

Whilst many already acknowledge us as the home of Brunel’s railways, we must also ensure that we are credited as being the UK’s hub for innovation and home to the UK’s Space Agency which has this week launched Major Tim into space.  So over the next six months, as everybody takes a keen interest in the progress of the first British astronaut aboard the ISS; remember that without Swindon and without our increasing contribution to innovation and research, we would never have had lift-off in the first place.