News

I’m an Astronaut, Get me out of here – Final report

I’m an Astronaut, Get me out of here was funded as part of the Principia Mission Education and Outreach Scheme. Four different zones (Training, Launch, Orbit and Touchdown) were run between October 2015 and June 2016 alongside different stages of Tim Peake’s mission. A final live chat (Debrief Zone), involving Tim and nominated schools, was held in November 2016. Below is a summary of our main findings. Read more in the full report here: I’m an Astronaut Final Report I’m an Astronaut engaged 2,004 students from across the UK with real people helping to make human space missions possible. 26 different people from across space industry and science, 16 directly related to the ISS and the Principia mission, were able to engage with school students as part of the Astro support Team. This included members of the ISS flight control team successfully working together on the site to provide students with a direct … Continue reading

Posted on February 22, 2017 by in Evaluation, News | Comments Off on I’m an Astronaut, Get me out of here – Final report

Final Live Chat: Highlights

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. 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 … Continue reading

Posted on February 17, 2017 by modjosh in News | Comments Off on Final Live Chat: Highlights

Final Live Chat: Transcript

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 also announced the overall winner of the event, as voted for by students. Below is an abridged* transcript of the live chat, pulling all of the questions and answers. Take a look at this post for just the chat highlights.   NAME MESSAGE ModAntony Hi everyone, before we start the chat we are going to announce the overall Astro Support Team winner as voted for by all the students who took part in I’m an Astronaut this past year! So hold your questions for a sec, please:) ModAntony @all Will it be Jenn, Beth, Julia or Charlie who takes home the £500 prize to use for more space outreach? ModAntony @all We’ve counted the votes, checked them about a million Times, and now can announce….. … Continue reading

Posted on February 17, 2017 by modjosh in News | Comments Off on Final Live Chat: Transcript

Debrief Zone: Who’s taking part?

More than 2,000 students have taken part in I’m an Astronaut this past year and put their questions to the Astro Support Teams. And the event is far from over. In the Debrief Zone winners from the four rounds of the I’m an Astronaut competition will come together and take part in a live chat with British European Space Agency (ESA) Astronaut Tim Peake. At 09.45am on 4th November, students will put their questions to Tim Peake himself, as well as the Astro Support Team winners from the Training, Launch, Orbit, and Touchdown Zones. And of course, there is the matter of the over-all winner, and the £500 prize to settle. Let meet the people taking part… Tim Peake More than 300 schools applied to take part in the I’m an Astronaut competition, for the chance to win a live chat with Tim Peake. Tim is an ESA astronaut of British … Continue reading

Posted on November 3, 2016 by modjosh in News | Comments Off on Debrief Zone: Who’s taking part?

Touchdown Zone Report – June 2016

Read the full report here The Touchdown Zone was the fourth round of I’m an Astronaut funded by the UK Space Agency’s Principia grant scheme and took place at the end of Tim Peake’s mission on the International Space Station. The Astro Support Team was made up of Vinita, a Space Operations Engineer at the European Space Agency, Kirsty, a PhD student researching how to keep astronauts’ backs healthy, Col Ops, who were a team of flight directors and ground controllers for the ISS, Charlie, a space physiologist and Andrea who is a Eurocomm for the ISS. As Tim Peake returned to Earth halfway through the event, there was a lot of discussion about his time on board the space station and what life will be like for him after he lands. This zone had the highest amount of questions approved out of all four I’m an Astronaut events, with … Continue reading

Posted on July 12, 2016 by modmichaela in News | Comments Off on Touchdown Zone Report – June 2016

The fourth (and final) Astro Support Team Champion is…

Charlie Laing has been voted the winner of the Touchdown Zone, the fourth and final round of the I’m an Astronaut competition. Charlie goes on to join Tim Peake, and the winners from the Training, Launch, and Orbit Zones, in the final live chat, where the overall champion, and winner of the £500 prize will also be revealed. Here’s what Charlie had to say to the students in the Touchdown Zone after they voted him the winner: Hello! What a great few weeks that was chatting to all of you and speaking about one of my favourite topics – space! The questions you came up with were fantastic and it was great to see how engaged and knowledgeable you were already about Tim Peake’s mission. From aliens taking over our planet and the sun destroying our solar system to Tim’s poor bones and his liking of pizza and beer ; your questions were sometimes morbid, always original, … Continue reading

Posted on July 4, 2016 by modjosh in News | Comments Off on The fourth (and final) Astro Support Team Champion is…

Touchdown Zone: School and Student Winners

We asked the Touchdown Zone Astro Support Team to select a student, and the school whose live chat stood out for them; the school and student they thought asked the best questions, or engaged most. In each round of the competition, students from the winning school, and the individual student winner will go on to take part in the final live chat with Tim Peake and the Astro Support Team winners. There were so many brilliant schools and students nominated as winners, in the end though, there could only be two winners. So, for fantastic engagement, for posting brilliant questions and comments, the winners are… School winner: St Michael’s RC Primary School Student winner: y.hashi, Colchester Academy Well done to everyone who took part. There were so many interesting questions, comments, and live chats!

Posted on July 4, 2016 by modjosh in News | Leave a comment

Touchdown Zone: Who’s taking part?

The Touchdown Zone, the fourth round of I’m an Astronaut, Get me out of here, begins on the 13th of June, with students from 25 schools located all over the country connecting with the Astro Support Team! From 13th–24th June, school students will challenge the Astro Support Team through fast-paced live chats and probing questions, before voting for their favourite Team member. For the latest news and announcements about I’m an Astronaut follow @iaagmooh on Twitter and look out for the hashtag #Principia. Let’s meet the schools and the Astro Support Team who’ll be interacting in the Touchdown Zone… The Astro Support Team Andrea Boyd | EUROCOM, ESA’s European Astronaut Centre, Germany I’m a Mechatronic Engineer working at the European Astronaut Centre as an ISS Flight Controller. We have to have a good technical overview of all of the experiments and also be good friends with the astronauts Charlie Laing | Scientist, German Space Agency (DLR), Cologne Using artificial gravity to … Continue reading

Posted on June 6, 2016 by in News | Leave a comment

Orbit Zone Report – March 2016

Read the full report here The Orbit Zone was the third round of I’m an Astronaut funded by the UK Space Agency’s Principia grant scheme and took place at the halfway point of Tim Peake’s mission on the International Space Station. The students in the Orbit Zone interacted with the Astro Support Team: people whose jobs related to human space missions like Principia. The Team consisted of an astronaut instructor, an astrobiologist with an experiment on board the ISS, an ESA research doctor based in Antarctica, a robotics engineer whose experiment Tim has been doing and a team of ISS flight controllers, Col Ops. Discussions in the zone covered a wide range of topics related to space with a specific focus on humans living on the ISS and the work of the Astro Support Team members. There was a particularly high number of comments from students on ASK questions.

Posted on April 13, 2016 by modmichaela in News | Comments Off on Orbit Zone Report – March 2016

Orbit Zone: School and Student Winners

We asked the Orbit Zone Astro Support Team to select a student, and the school whose live chat stood out for them; the school and student they thought asked the best questions, or engaged most. In each round of the competition, students from the winning school, and the individual student winner will go on to take part in the final live chat with Tim Peake and the Astro Support Team winners in the summer. So, for fantastic engagement, for posting brilliant questions and comments, the winners are… School winner: Hillcroft Primary School Student winner: Soyuz Guru, St James CE Middle School Well done to everyone who took part. There were so many interesting questions, comments, and live chats but there could only be one student winner, and one winning school. Join us for the next round, Touchdown Zone, running 13th–24th June!

Posted on April 12, 2016 by in News | Comments Off on Orbit Zone: School and Student Winners

The third Astro Support Team Champion is…

Last week, Jenn Wadsworth was voted the winner in the Orbit Zone, the third round of I’m an Astronaut. Jenn goes on to join Tim Peake, and the winners from the Training, Launch, and Touchdown Zones, in this summer’s final live chat. Here’s what Jenn had to say to the students in the Orbit Zone after they voted her the winner: A massive hello and thank you from the UK Centre for Astrobiology here at Uni Edinburgh! I think my keyboard may have started smoking at one point from all the super fast typing during the chats! I had so much fun talking to all you guys and answering some pretty awesome questions! I thought I knew what to expect, but was proven wrong time and time again and was very refreshed to see just how enthusiastic young people are about all things space and to also get their perspective on things – I actually feel like I … Continue reading

Posted on March 24, 2016 by in News | Comments Off on The third Astro Support Team Champion is…

“Is it hard to breathe without gravity?” – Orbit Zone questions leave us breathless

Astronaut Tim Peake has been orbiting the Earth on the ISS for nearly half of his 6 month mission. Likewise, the Orbit Zone, the second round of I’m an Astronaut, is half-way through! Already, a lot has been happening: 305 school students have logged in, the Astro Support Team have answered 238 questions in ASK , and everyone has enjoyed the 9 fast-paced and insightful live chats so far (Highlight: “Is T.Peake really nice as he seems on video or does space just make u really happy?”) Before we we get into evictions week,  read on to find out what’s been going on in the Zone. Thanks to the questions from students to the Astro Support Team, we’ve learned… Why air-conditioning is important in space No, breathing is the same as we use a muscle to change the shape of our lungs and pull air inside. However, without gravity the air does not mix, so the carbon dioxide we breath out forms a bubble … Continue reading

Posted on March 14, 2016 by in News | Comments Off on “Is it hard to breathe without gravity?” – Orbit Zone questions leave us breathless

Orbit Zone: Who’s taking part?

The Orbit Zone, the third round of I’m an Astronaut, Get me out of here, begins on the 7th of March, with students from 25 schools located all over the country connecting with the Astro Support Team! From 7th–18th March, schools students will challenge the Astro Support Team through fast-paced live chats and probing questions, before voting for their favourite Team member. For the latest news and announcements about I’m an Astronaut follow @iaagmooh on Twitter and look out for the hashtag #Principia. Let’s meet the schools and the Astro Support Team who’ll be interacting in the Orbit Zone… The Astro Support Team Richard Moss | Astronaut Training Manager, Airbus Defence & Space, Germany During the last 8 years I worked at the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne. Specifically to Tim, I was his instructor for Generic Robotic Training which is an intensive hands-on course learning to operate the various robotic arm systems on the ISS.  Jenn Wadsworth | PhD … Continue reading

Posted on February 26, 2016 by modjosh in News | Comments Off on Orbit Zone: Who’s taking part?

CHRISTMAS LECTURES Zone Report

Click to read the full zone report The CHRISTMAS LECTURES Zone of I’m an Astronaut was funded by the Royal Institution so that schools and the general public could continue the conversation about the lectures’ theme ‘How to survive in space’ with the presenter Kevin Fong and other experts in the field of human space missions and space technology. The 14 experts involved ranged from ESA astronauts, to doctors researching the effects of extreme conditions on the human body in Antarctica, to satellite engineers working on protecting spacecraft during launch, to astrobiologists looking at how life survives in space. This was the busiest CHRISTMAS LECTURES zone yet across many measures of activity. In particular, there were 37 live chats between students and experts over the four weeks (compared to 20 last year) and more than five times the number of questions submitted in ASK.

Posted on February 26, 2016 by in News | Comments Off on CHRISTMAS LECTURES Zone Report

Launch Zone Report

Read the full report here The Launch Zone was the second round of I’m an Astronaut funded by the UK Space Agency’s Principia grant scheme. Astronaut Tim Peake’s launch took place halfway through the two weeks and the students in the zone interacted with the Astro Support Team: people whose jobs related to human space missions like Principia. The Team consisted of an ESA flight director, an engineer based in Antarctica, and three scientists: one planning an experiment for the International Space Station (ISS), one developing a suit for astronauts to wear in space and another working on a rehabilitation technology for astronauts. The zone was busy, especially in the 22 live chats that took place. Discussions in the zone covered a wide range of topics related to space, with a specific focus on human space travel and the work of the Astro Support Team members.

Posted on February 15, 2016 by in News | Comments Off on Launch Zone Report

The second Astro Support Team Champion is….

Just before the Christmas holiday, Julia Attias was crowned the winner of the Launch Zone. Julia will go on to take part in the final live chat with Tim Peake, and the winners from the Training, Orbit, and Touchdown Zones, in the summer. Here’s what Julia had to say to the students in the Launch Zone after they voted her the winner: Wow – I am chuffed that I won your vote! Can I firstly say what an amazing opportunity it was to be involved in I’m An Astronaut Get Me Out of Here. What an incredible way to help get all you guys learning more about space and how you can get involved one day! I’d especially like to thank all of the team who make the program possible, if it wasn’t for you, it would never have run so smoothly. I had so much fun talking to you all of you! I’d also like to say … Continue reading

Posted on January 7, 2016 by in News | Comments Off on The second Astro Support Team Champion is….

Launch Zone: School and Student Winners

We asked the Launch Zone Astro Support Team to select a student, and the school whose live chat stood out for them; the school and student they thought asked the best questions, or engaged most. In each round of the competition, students from the winning school, and the individual student winner will go on to take part in the final live chat with Tim Peake and the Astro Support Team winners in the summer. So, for fantastic engagement, for posting brilliant questions and comments, the winners are… School winner: Fowey River Academy Student winner: Octopus Prime, Matravers School Well done to everyone who took part. There were so many interesting questions, comments, and live chats but there could only be one student winner, and one winning school.

Posted on January 7, 2016 by in News | Comments Off on Launch Zone: School and Student Winners

“What happens when you fart in space?” – Launch Zone has no limits

Tim Peake launches for the International Space Station tomorrow morning! Equally exciting, the Launch Zone, the second round of I’m an Astronaut, is half-way through! Already, a lot has been happening: 420 school students have logged in, the Astro Support Team have answered 234 questions in ASK , and everyone has enjoyed the 13 fast-paced and insightful live chats so far. Before we ‘launch’ into evictions week, and Tim Peake launches himself towards the ISS, read on below to check out what’s going on in the Zone. If you’re a teacher and want your class to talk to people like ESA Flight director Simon, ISS experimenter Delma, British Antarctic Survey engineer Alex, space suit scientist Julia, post-space physio Andrew and others who make human space missions possible, you can register your interest in the next two zones at imanastronaut.uk/teachers. Want to be a part of the Astro Support Team in the upcoming zones? Just email antony@gallomanor.com with a two line summary of how your work relates to the ESA Principia mission or other space … Continue reading

Posted on December 14, 2015 by in News | Comments Off on “What happens when you fart in space?” – Launch Zone has no limits

Launch Zone: Who’s taking part

Launch Zone, the second round of I’m an Astronaut, Get me out of here begins on the 7th of December, with students from 25 schools located all over the country connecting with the Astro Support Team! From 7th–18th December, schools students will challenge the scientists, medic, engineer and flight controller who make up the Astro Support Team through fast-paced live chats and probing questions, before voting for their favourite Team member. For the latest news and announcements about I’m an Astronaut, along with the occasional highly relevant GIF, follow @iaagmooh on Twitter and look out for the hashtag #Principia. Let’s meet the schools and the Astro Support Team who’ll be interacting in the Launch Zone… The Astro Support Team Simon Challis | Flight Director  I’m part of Mission Control in Munich, looking after the Columbus Module and the ISS crew! I will be ‘on-console’ during Tim’s Mission. Julia Attias | PhD Student at King’s College … Continue reading

Posted on November 26, 2015 by in News | Comments Off on Launch Zone: Who’s taking part

Training Zone Report

The Training Zone was the first round of  I’m an Astronaut. The students in the Training Zone interacted with the Astro Support Team: people whose jobs related to human space missions like Principia. The Team consisted of an ESA astronaut instructor, an ESA research doctor based in Antarctica, a scientist planning an experiment for the International Space Station (ISS), an engineer who designed cameras for the ISS and three ESA flight directors who are responsible for the Columbus module of the ISS. The Zone was busy, with students taking part in 21 live chats and asking over 1100 questions. Discussions were focused on the theme of human spaceflight, and students asked about the work of the Astro Support Team members, the Principia mission and wider topics related to space science. Read the Training Zone Report here

Posted on October 23, 2015 by in News | Comments Off on Training Zone Report

Training Zone: School and Student Winners

We asked the Training Zone Astro Support Team to select a student, and the school whose live chat stood out for them; the school and student they thought asked the best questions, or engaged most. In each round of the competition, students from the winning school, and the individual student winner will go on to take part in the final live chat with Tim Peake and the Astro Support Team winners next summer. So, for fantastic engagement, for posting brilliant questions and comments, the winners are… School winner: Newstead Wood School Student winner: Sheldon Cooper, Caroline Chisholm School Well done to everyone who took part. There were so many interesting questions, comments, and live chats but there could only be one student winner, and one winning school.

Posted on October 22, 2015 by modjosh in News | Comments Off on Training Zone: School and Student Winners

And the first Astro Support Team champion is…

Last week, Beth Healey emerged victorious as winner of the Training Zone. Beth will go on to take part in the final live chat with Tim Peake, and the winners from the Launch, Orbit, and Touchdown Zones, next summer. Here’s what Beth had to say to the students in the Training Zone after they voted her the winner: Hello from Antarctica! I hope you all enjoyed I’m an Astronaut, Get me out of here as much as I did! Your questions were great and I think I learnt just as much as you did by answering them! I think we have certainly set the standard high for future zones to come! I think the rest of my crew wondered where I had disappeared to for the past fortnight as I was glued to the computer screen. The live chats were my favourite part and I don’t think I’ve ever typed … Continue reading

Posted on October 22, 2015 by modjosh in News | Comments Off on And the first Astro Support Team champion is…

“How do you celebrate your birthday in space?” – Training Zone in action

Training Zone, the first round of I’m an Astronaut, is well underway, and everyone in the Zone certainly has the Right Stuff: 488 students have logged in, the Astro Support Team have answered 294 questions in ASK (like the one at the top), and all have enjoyed 13 fast-paced and insightful live chats, with more to come. They’ve even managed to deal successfully with an array of diverse time zones and the occasional fickleness of Antarctic communications networks; nothing can stop this intergalactic engagement train. If you’re a teacher and want your class to talk to people like ESA flight directors Sergio, Libby and Simon, space engineer Tom, Antarctic research doctor Beth, plant scientist Anne, astronaut instructor Jon, and others who make human space missions possible, you can register for the next three zones at imanastronaut.uk/teachers. Want to be a part of the Astro Support Team in the upcoming zones? Just email antony@gallomanor.com with a two line summary of how your work relates to the ESA Principia mission. Yesterday, RAL Space engineer Tom … Continue reading

Posted on October 14, 2015 by in News | Comments Off on “How do you celebrate your birthday in space?” – Training Zone in action

Training Zone: Who’s taking part?

I’m an Astronaut, Get me out of here starts this October, with students from 25 schools located all over the country connecting with the Astro Support Team in the Training Zone! Between 5th–16th October, schools students will challenge the engineer, medic, instructor, scientist and flight controller who make up the Team through fast-paced live chats and probing questions, before voting for their favourite Team member. For the latest news and announcements about I’m an Astronaut follow @IAAGMOOH on Twitter and look out for the hashtag #Principia. Let’s meet the schools and the Astro Support Team who’ll be interacting in the Training Zone… The Astro Support Team Anne Visscher | Career Development Fellow in Comparative Seed Biology, Kew Gardens, UK If humans want to travel to other planets and stay there for a long time, they need to take seeds with them. Without seeds, they cannot grow plants for food, oxygen, clean water and many other things that they will … Continue reading

Posted on September 18, 2015 by in News | Comments Off on Training Zone: Who’s taking part?

Round Dates and Registration Deadlines: 2015/16

There will be four rounds of the I’m an Astronaut competition, named for the phase of the mission Tim will be in when each round takes place. The rounds will be: Training, Launch, Orbit, and Touchdown. Round 1: Training Zone Dates running: 5th–16th October 2015 Registration for Round 1 has closed. Teachers can register their interest in taking part in Rounds 2, 3, and 4. Round 2: Launch Zone Dates running: 7th–18th December 2015 Teacher registration deadline: 10 am 26th October 2015 Round 3: Orbit Zone Dates running: 7th–18th March 2016 Teacher registration deadline: 24th January 2016 Round 4: Touchdown Zone Dates running: 13th–24th June 2016 Teacher registration deadline: 24th April 2016   Teacher info and registration The competition is totally free for schools, though places are limited. For more information and to register interest, go to: imanastronaut.uk/teachers Join the Astro Support Team If your work relates to the Principia Mission, and you would like to take … Continue reading

Posted on September 7, 2015 by modjosh in News | Leave a comment

Launching your students’ questions into the thermosphere

From the effects of solar radiation on people living on the International Space Station, to opinions on space travel; there are few topics which inspire quite so many questions as Space. Another question, asked probably in every live chat in every I’m a Scientist Space Zone we’ve run: “Have you ever been to space?” The answer has always been “no”… Until now. Launching today with funding from the UK Space Agency, I’m an Astronaut, Get me out of here is giving school students all over the UK the opportunity to put their questions to the team behind the Principia Mission. There will be four rounds, with the first running 5th–16th October, and teachers can sign up now to take part with their class — The registration deadline for Round 1 is 12PM on Monday 20th July 2015. For more information see imanastronaut.uk/teachers.  

Posted on July 15, 2015 by modjosh in News | Leave a comment