Tim Peake has today become the first British man to walk in space. Follow our live updates during this historic event here:
KEY EVENTS SO FAR
Tim Peake odds-on for knighthood
After today’s historic space walk, the bookies reckon Tim Peake is odds-on for knighthood.
Ladbrookes says odds of the British astronaut becoming Sir Tim before the end of the decade are just 1/2.
Longer odds of 33/1 are also offered that Peake becomes the first man on Mars.
Alex Donohue of Ladbrokes said: “The odds suggest it will be 5,4,3,2,1 knighthood for Peake sooner rather than later.”
Alex Donohue of Ladbrokes said: “The odds suggest it will be 5,4,3,2,1 knighthood for Peake sooner rather than later.”
Space selfies
While they wait for the ISS to get into position, Tim Peake and Tim Kopra are making the most of their time - taking selfies...
15 minutes until the work really begins
We have about 15 minutes now until the International Space Station goes into the Earth’s shadow, and the Tims can start to remove the broken regulator and replace it with the new one.
There is a 31 minute window from 14.37 GMT to 15.08 GMT, during which the solar array hooked up to the power unit won’t be in sunlight and so won’t be generating electricity.
You don’t want to be handling one those things when the current is on!
How did Tim Peake become an astronaut?
If you’re feeling as inspired by these pictures as we are, you might be wondering what it takes to become an astronaut.
Major Peake was born in Chichester and went on to graduate from Sandhurst in 1992 as an officer in the Army Air Corps.
He went on to train as a reconnaissance pilot and flight commander, before being employed as an Apache helicopter instructor from 2002 to 2005.
It was not until May 2009 that he was selected as a European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut, and completed basic training in November 2010.
Together again
Tim Peake has met up with Kopra at the end of the ISS, and the two will now work together to unbolt the failed unit on the Station’s truss and replace it with a new one.
This can only be done in darkness, so they will be relying on torch lights attached to the top of their helmets.
Floating in space and fighting gravity
Tim Peake is now making his way towards the failed power regulator, where Tim Kopra is waiting for him.
The heavy equipment makes movement difficult, because it alters his centre of gravity.
“The difficulty is, there has to be rigidity,” explained Nottingham University associate professor and anti-gravity expert Dr Nathaniel Szewczyk.
“So with the pressure of the suit, it actually requires more muscular effort to move around than not being in the suit.”
Inspiring the next generation
Tim Peake’s mission to the International Space Station has been welcomed by the British science community, who see it as a golden opportunity to foster young people’s love of science.
“Tim Peake’s mission can inspire young people to pursue an education and a career in science, and ultimately to help the UK to remain competitive in a world economy that is increasingly reliant on technology and research,” said Angus Horner, director of the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire.
“Today’s space walk may be one small step for Tim, but we are hoping it will also bring about a giant leap for young people’s love of science all over the UK.”
Jo Johnson, MP for Orpington and Minister of State for Universities and Science, has also tweeted his support:
The British space industry employs over 37,000 people directly and 100,000 indirectly and contributes more than £11 billion to the national economy.
They're on the move
The two Tims are currently making their way across the International Space Station towards the broken Sequential Shunt Unit (SSU). This should only take them a few minutes.
Peake will then make his way to the Harmony Node, where he will install new cables on the ISS’s Unity Module.
Meanwhile Kopra, who is leading the mission, will replace a vent at the SSU.
Could a toothbrush be the key to success?
The astronauts’ mission over the next three hours is to replace a Sequential Shunt Unit (SSU) - a key component of the ISS power system.
However, in order to complete this task, they will need to remove a tricky bolt first.
In the past this has proved troublesome, so the astronauts are carrying a modified toothbrush, which will allow them to clean the bolt if it becomes an issue.
This means that it will hopefully turn in a smoother fashion, allowing them to replace the SSU quickly.
Writing in his blog, Peake compared the use of a toothbrush in such a complex mission to makeshift survival techniques used by Matt Damon’s character Mark Watney in The Martian - based on the novel by Andy Weir.
Tim Kopra emerges from the ISS
Tim Kopra has emerged from the International Space Station, with Tim Peake following close behind. Both are tethered to the ISS with cables. They are currently in darkness, but they will switch from darkness to light every 45 minutes, as the station orbits Earth every one-and-a-half hours.
The hatch is open!
The hatch is open and Tim Peake and Tim Kopra are switching to battery power. They are about to step outside the ISS.
“This is probably the closest experience of space you can ever have,” said Dr Daniel Brown, an astronomy expert at Nottingham Trent University.
“The experience of utter vacuum around you, only a suit surrounding you, and where one wrong movement – for example forgetting to attach a tether - can mean a life-threatening situation or even death.
“But it’s in these moments described by Tim himself as the pinnacle of an astronaut’s career that can leave a real impact on the astronaut. These are really sublime experiences of the beauty and awe-inspiring wonders of space, stars and ultimately our fragile and beautiful Earth.”
Tim Peake is solid as a rock ahead of historic space walk
Despite confessing that he was scared of floating away into space, Tim Peake appears to be keeping his cool.
In a blog post published ahead of his mission, he wrote: “I can hear my trainers at the European Astronaut Centre and their constant drilling in my ears: ‘you stop, you drop.’
“In space, if it isn’t fixed down it will float away, and that includes ourselves.”
However, as he prepares to step outside the ISS, NASA Mission Control - which is monitoring Peake’s vital signs - claims he is “rock steady”
Astronauts have donned their jetpacks and are in the airlock
Those of you watching the live stream will notice that the hatch has now been closed with Tim Peake and Tim Kopra inside, and airlock has been activated.
Both astronauts are wearing SAFER units that will be their backup if they ever lose grip of the International Space Station.
The SAFER backpack (Simplified Aid For EVA Rescue) is a jetpack that expells nitrogen jets to propel the astronauts back to safety. To keep weight and size down only a small amount of nitrogen propellant is stored, so the backpack is to be used in emergencies only.
Space walk veteran Nicholas Patrick says Tim should 'enjoy the view'
British-born US astronaut Nicholas Patrick, a space walk veteran, said Major Peake should find time to enjoy the “majesty of the view” during his EVA.
Dr Patrick said: “When you float out, it is a remarkable feeling. You are used to floating - by this point Tim has been in space for a month, he will know exactly what floating is like - what he won’t be used to is being outside the space station with a fabulous view and, perhaps more importantly, with a very difficult set of time-critical tasks ahead of him.
He told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “Take a look around, look down and enjoy it, would be my advice to Tim. It’s the astronaut’s equivalent of stopping to smell the roses.”
"I can see for miles and miles and miles"
Veteran rock band The Who, have also sent their best wishes to Tim Peake ahead of his historic space walk, quoting their own lyrics in a tweet to the British astronaut:
What risks does Tim Peake face?
While it is unusual for anything to go wrong during a space walks, stepping outside the International Space Station is not without its dangers.
In 2013, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano almost drowned during a space walk when his helmet began filling with water.
The British spaceman is also worried that one tiny mistake could mean he ends up “floating away” into the void, with little chance of being rescued.
Find out what else could go wrong here: Tim Peake space walk: Here’s what could go wrong during British astronaut’s mission
Prime Minister wishes Tim Peake 'good luck'
Prime Minister David Cameron has wished British astronaut Tim Peake good luck ahead of his historic spacewalk.
Mr Cameron took to Twitter hours before the space walk, posting:
Tim's biggest challenge
The biggest challenge for British astronaut Tim Peake on his first spacewalk will be working out how to move around and orienting himself, an anti-gravity expert has said.
Major Peake has been training for this moment for many years. Back on earth, this training took place in the world’s largest swimming pool.
Major Peake has been training for this moment for many years. Back on earth, this training took place in the world’s largest swimming pool.
But water creates a viscous environment that is slightly different to the vacuum of space, according to Nottingham University associate professor and anti-gravity expert Dr Nathaniel Szewczyk.
He said: “Most of the astronauts who go out there say that’s the main things to adjust to - actually figuring out how to move - because the kinetics of movement are a bit different.”
Dr Szewczyk added that the heavy equipment Major Peake needs to carry will present another challenge, even in space, because it will alter his centre of gravity.
“The difficulty is, there has to be rigidity, so with the pressure of the suit, it actually requires more muscular effort to move around than not being in the suit.”
Astronauts Tim Peake and Tim Kopra are 'prebreathing'
Astronauts Tim Peake and Tim Kopra are getting ready for their historic space walk, which will begin in a couple of hours.
The pair are already suited up and “prebreathing” - which means they are breathing pure oxygen to purge their bodies of nitrogen.
Inside the International Space Station the astronauts live in air at pressures similar to on Earth, but outside there is no air pressure, so astronauts wear spacesuits to keep safe.
Operating a spacesuit at normal air pressure is impractical as it creates large pressure differences between inside the spacesuit and the vacuum of space, so they operate at reduced air pressure.
The disadvantage of this is that, as you transition from high to lower pressure, the normal nitrogen in your blood can form dangerous bubbles inside. This is a very serious condition known as decompression sickness or ‘the bends’.
An effective way to stop the nitrogen from causing problems is by removing it altogether. This is what Tim and Tim are doing right now.
By breathing pure oxygen for two hours their bodies will no longer have any nitrogen. The astronauts do some light exercise to help speed up the process as well as continue preparing for the space walk.
Tim Peake steps into the void
Tim Peake is preparing to perform his first space walk today, making him one of just a handful of British-born people to venture into the void.
The 43-year-old British astronaut and his NASA colleague Tim Kopra will step out of the International Space Station (ISS) at about 12.55 GMT, and spend around six-and-a-half hours attempting to repair a broken power unit.
The pair will work in 45-minute blocks of daylight, then complete darkness, as the station orbits Earth every one-and-a-half hours.
Major Peake, writing on his blog, said he felt “exhilarated” by the prospect of walking in space, but said: “I have no time to dwell on these emotions.
“The six hours and 30 minutes we will work on the Space Station’s hull are meticulously planned and Tim and I need to execute each step methodically,” he said.
In an overview of the space walk - referred to as an Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA) - the European Space Agency said every detail was “choreographed minutely”.
Major Peake will begin to breathe pure oxygen two hours beforehand, because the pressure inside their suits is lower than that of the ISS. The pair will then enter an airlock before opening its hatch and heading outside.
Like rock climbers, the astronauts must always be tethered to Space Station supports. Colonel Kopra will lead, heading to the solar units that need to be repaired. Once given the green light, Major Peake will follow with the replacement equipment.
They should finish the repairs in under three hours, and at that point ground control will perform some checks.
During the second half of the EVA, the astronauts will lay cables for new docking ports and reinstall a valve that was removed last year.
You can follow the video live stream here from 11.30am GMT.
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