On the morning of Friday 4th November 2016, the I’m an Astronaut competition culminated with the school and Astro Support team winners taking part in a live chat with British astronaut, Tim Peake.

We’ve pulled together some of the highlights from the chat below. If you’d like more, take a look at the abridged version of the full transcript, pulling together all of the questions and answers.

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27 Things We Learnt in Debrief Zone live chat

1. Giving birth in Space would make a lot of mess

Fowey – Event Horizon:@all What would happen if someone was born in space?
Jenn@Fowey – Event Horizon a massive mess

2. Naughty kids can be scientists

Fowey scientists: @Charlie how hard do you have to work to in school to be a space physiologist
Charlie: @Fowey scientists I was a little bit naughty at school but had a passion for science. I finally realised if I worked hard I could do science as a job 🙂

3. How does going to space change your world view?

star100 @Tim How has being in space changed your perspective on the way we live?
Tim @star100 It gives you an appreacition for how small and fragile our planet is, and how we need to look after it.

4. There’s NO countdown!

star100 @Tim what feelings went through your head as the count down started
Tim @star100 There is no countdown! We simply launch on Time. But at that stage I was just focused on making sure the spacecraft was in good condition

5. You can fit a gorilla suit in a large shoebox

NWSG asteroid @Tim @all If there is a restricted amount of things that you can bring in to space, why did the other Tim bring a gorilla suit with them?
Tim @NWSG asteroid Gorilla suit was Scott Kelly – so ask him! Limit is large shoebox size

via GIPHY

6. You’ll get a better night’s sleep on solid ground

Hillcroft Euan @all Is it easier to sleep up in space or on Earth?
Julia @Hillcroft Euan I would imagine on Earth, though I have never been to space.. only @Tim can answer that properly 🙂
Tim @SuperNovaX Hard to sleep in space

7. Astronauts work 16 days for every one you do

Ameen @Tim did the days feel shorter because of being surrounded by darkness
Tim @Ameen No working day felt long and you get used to 16 sunsets and sunrises a day

8. You know that quote about aiming for the stars, and maybe you’ll land on the Moon?

hillcroft16ar @Tim what did you want to be when you were a kid
Tim @Ethan Wanted to be helicopter pilot

9. Students debate the value of space exploration

Briarley @all with all the poverty in the world, why is it important to spend money on things like missions to space? (not saying it isn’t, just interested to hear your view on this)
Beth @Briarley Because lots of space research and technology can also benefit life back on Earth – especially for healthcare, farming and disaster relief
Jenn @Briarley technology developed for space missions can be applied to problems like recycling water here on earth
Hillcroft-Ella&Olivia @Briarly I think that we should spend more money on the bigger problems on earth. This is just my opinion though.

10. Rocket launches> Alton Towers, obvs

Obi wan kenobi nil @Tim what did launch feel like?
Tim @Obi wan kenobi nil it’s the most exciting ride of your life!

11. And what a view

hillcroft16ar @Tim what was your favourite thing about being on the ISS
Tim @hillcroft16ar View of planet Earth

12. Exploring Mars is what the scientists of the future want to do

Hillcroft-Ella&Olivia @all if you got 1 million pounds to spend on anything to do with space what thing to do with space would you spend it on
Beth @Hillcroft-Ella&Olivia Im really interested in the human side of space so do some more research about the effects of space on the astronauts. What would you spend it on?
Julia @Hillcroft-Ella&Olivia some clever technological way to keep all of our body healthy in space!
Jenn @Hillcroft-Ella&Olivia building a lunar base! 😀
Hillcroft-Ella&Olivia @Beth i would spend it on astrobiology and robots to find life form on mars 🙂
Beth @Hillcroft-Ella&Olivia ahh cool, are you interested in the ExoMars mission?!
Hillcroft-Ella&Olivia @Beth yes i find astrobiology and mars interesting its my favourite part of science

13. Is Mars what’s next for Tim?

SuperNovaX @Tim now that you have been ISS would you go to mars
Tim @SuperNovaX In furture we need to reduce transit Time to Mars, which would make it a great mission to go on

Fowey scientists @Tim How close do you think we are to being able to colonize Mars?
Tim @Fowey scientists Probably 50 to 100 years away
Charlie @Fowey scientists We’re probably going to Mars in about 20 years or sooner…!!!
Fowey scientists @Charlie how long till we go to mars on a one way trip
Charlie @Fowey scientists I think it would be sensible to go on a return trip to Mars… Don’t you? The USA plan a return trip to Mars in the 2030s – so maybe you lot will be the right age to go at that Time?!!!

…then Fowey Scientists made us all feel old…

Fowey scientists @Charlie we would we in our late 20’s

14. If anything, the ISS is a bit drafty

NWSG asteroid @Tim Did you feel claustrophobic in the ISS?
Tim @NWSG asteroid No – it’s about the size of a 747 and there are only 6 people onboard

15. Pls no more questions on this

Fowey scientists @Tim how do you go to the toilet in space
Tim @Fowey scientists My YouTube video explains it all!

16. Don’t expect Tim on the cover of OK! Magazine

NWSG asteroid Do you enjoy the fame you received after going to the ISS or do you find it daunting?
Tim @NWSG asteroid I don’t enjoy the celebrity aspects of being an astronaut. To me it is a professional occupation but it is important of course to explain to people what we are doing in space and why

17. Can’t see this brilliant idea backfiring

Obi wan kenobi nil @all if we can’t find aliens could we just try recreate what made us on another planet like earth to see how that turns out?
Beth @Obi wan kenobi nil Thats an interesting ethical idea – we have to be careful about what we do in science someTimes though

18. Julia probably wasn’t thinking about warp cores

Briarley @all could we ever have the sort of technology seen in sci-fi franchises like Star Trek?
Julia @Briarley We could make it for sure, but unfortunately its just not practical. It costs too much money, and has too much mass

19. Space suits are… Difficult

NWSG asteroid @Julia Is it hard for astronaut suits to be lightweight and comfortable?
Julia @NWSG asteroid no.. its not difficult for them to be lightweight and comfortable… but it is if you want them to also provide gravity! Because providing gravity means making the suit extra tight in a downwards fashion from the shoulders to the feet

SuperNovaX @Julia Julia- what are the possible design improvements that could be made to the current space suits?
Tim @SuperNovaX Greater manoueravbility and flexibilty
Julia @SuperNovaX good question. I think that comfort is of utmost importance. Thankfully we’ve managed to nail that. Next will be making sure that it can produce as much gravity as possible to help keep everything healthy

20. Probably the equivalent to a boat if you’re stranded on a desert island…

NWSG asteroid @all What would you take if you got stranded in space?
Tim @NWSG asteroid A jet pack!

21. Doing science feels like a privilege

SuperNovaX @all do you feel pround to be helping humans understand more about the world around them
Tim @supernovax Yes – huge privilege to help understand
Julia @SuperNovaX without a doubt. Fuels me to get up everyday!
Beth @SuperNovaX Yeah its great to be involved
Beth @SuperNovaX Definitely – there is loads which we learn from space which can help life back on earth

22. But did the cake have candles?

NWSG asteroid Did you celebrate your birthday on the space station? How was it?
Tim @NWSG asteroid Yes, Tim K and myself had birthday 2 days apart and we shared a cake.
Julia @Tim hah thats amazing!

23. The scientists turn careers advisors

SuperNovaX @all if you wanted to pursue a job in the ‘space business’ what qualifications would you need to have
Julia @SuperNovaX great question. pursue any of the STEM subjects. Scuience, Tech, Engineering, and or Maths. You’ll find a way in with any of them

24. Please, go to space in moderation

NWSG asteroid Does going into space decrease your life expectancy?
Beth @NWSG asteroid It can have some long term effects for some people but for most things normalise so long as you dont go for too long!

SuperNovaX @all How does weightlessness affect an astronauts body once they go into space?
Tim @SuperNovaX I lost bone mass and had to work hard to keep muscle mass
Beth @SuperNovaX lots of ways, one is that all the fluid in your body floats around too! This is why astronauts look a bit fatter around their faces when they are in space!

star100 @Julia how can you have a healthy diet when you only have a certain amount of food to eat in space?
Julia @star100 great question. The nutritional intake of astronauts is extremely carefully worked out. They make sure that they get everything they need, and take into account all the activity they will be doing to make sure they have enough.

saniya @Charlie why do astronauts bones and muscles get weak in space?
Charlie When we are on Earth out bodies have to work against gravity. Although it is not difficult this loading helps keep muscles and bones strong. When we take away the gravity forces the body no longer has to work against it so the bone and muscles adapt

25. No Alien? Unbelievable

Briarley @all what’s the most accurate space movie?
Tim @Briarley I loved Interstellar for their ambitious attempt to explain gravitational Time dilation and what happens beyond the event horizon of a black hole!

SaturnV for the win @all Whats youre favourite space movie
Beth @SaturnV for the win Wall-E

Fowey – Event Horizon @Charlie Is a situation like the plot of The Martian possible in Mars?
Charlie @Fowey – Event Horizon Yes I think it is perfectly possible but one major thing the film misses out is the effect of space radiation. Mars does not have a magnetosphere so it unprotected from potentially deadly radiation.

26. Reach! For the stars!

SuperNovaX @all what advice would yuo give for budding scientists and astronauts
Beth @SuperNovaX Go for it!!
Julia @SuperNovaX pursue STEM subjects at school, and through into higher education
Tim @all Find out what you are good at and passionate about

27. And finally, this sounds like a wager to us

Obi wan kenobi nil @all will we ever run out of new things to know?
Julia @Obi wan kenobi nil nope!