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| British astronaut Tim Peake blasts off on six-month mission to space station | British astronaut Tim Peake blasts off on six-month mission to space station |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Britain’s first European Space Agency astronaut, Tim Peake, has blasted off on a six-month mission to the International Space Station from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. | Britain’s first European Space Agency astronaut, Tim Peake, has blasted off on a six-month mission to the International Space Station from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. |
| The 310-tonne Soyuz rocket launched into a clear blue sky over the Kazakh steppe at 11.03am GMT on a six-hour trip to deliver Maj Peake and his two crewmates to the orbiting station. | |
| Related: Tim Peake launch: British astronaut prepares for blast off to ISS – live | Related: Tim Peake launch: British astronaut prepares for blast off to ISS – live |
| It was a perfect launch that saw the Soyuz tear into the sky with a tail of flame and give chase to the space station which soared overhead three minutes earlier. A camera in the capsule showed Tim Peake pump his fist as the first stage fell away from the rocket. Minutes later, a gravity indicator in the capsule began to float as the crew became weightless. | It was a perfect launch that saw the Soyuz tear into the sky with a tail of flame and give chase to the space station which soared overhead three minutes earlier. A camera in the capsule showed Tim Peake pump his fist as the first stage fell away from the rocket. Minutes later, a gravity indicator in the capsule began to float as the crew became weightless. |
| Travelling in the cramped Soyuz capsule with Peake are Nasa astronaut Tim Kopra, and veteran Russian commander Yuri Malenchenko. They are due to arrive at the space station at 5.23pm GMT and open the hatch to their new home two hours later. | Travelling in the cramped Soyuz capsule with Peake are Nasa astronaut Tim Kopra, and veteran Russian commander Yuri Malenchenko. They are due to arrive at the space station at 5.23pm GMT and open the hatch to their new home two hours later. |
| The 26 million horsepower rocket engines burn 270 tonnes of kerosene and liquid oxygen to catch up with the space station which circles the planet at 17,500mph, 400km above the surface. | The 26 million horsepower rocket engines burn 270 tonnes of kerosene and liquid oxygen to catch up with the space station which circles the planet at 17,500mph, 400km above the surface. |
| Before takeoff, Peake said farewell to his wife, Rebecca, and their two young sons from behind a glass screen that protects the astronauts from picking up infections ahead of their trip into space. He later waved and gave a thumbs up to his children from the bus that takes the astronauts to the launchpad. | Before takeoff, Peake said farewell to his wife, Rebecca, and their two young sons from behind a glass screen that protects the astronauts from picking up infections ahead of their trip into space. He later waved and gave a thumbs up to his children from the bus that takes the astronauts to the launchpad. |
| As the crew suited up and got ready for launch, wellwishers sent Peake messages of good luck for the mission. Elton John, who released the track Rocket Man in 1972, said on Twitter: “From one Rocket Man to another, good luck @astro_timpeake with your launch and mission!” | As the crew suited up and got ready for launch, wellwishers sent Peake messages of good luck for the mission. Elton John, who released the track Rocket Man in 1972, said on Twitter: “From one Rocket Man to another, good luck @astro_timpeake with your launch and mission!” |
| Related: What it takes to travel through space – in pictures | Related: What it takes to travel through space – in pictures |
| Peake’s wife and children, and his parents Angela and Nigel, watched the launch from the VIP observation area more than a mile from the launchpad. Friends and relatives on the ground hugged each other with relief as the news that the craft had entered space came through. According to the Press Association, Rebecca was heard to say: “Wasn’t it an amazing sight? I had the biggest smile on my face.” | Peake’s wife and children, and his parents Angela and Nigel, watched the launch from the VIP observation area more than a mile from the launchpad. Friends and relatives on the ground hugged each other with relief as the news that the craft had entered space came through. According to the Press Association, Rebecca was heard to say: “Wasn’t it an amazing sight? I had the biggest smile on my face.” |
| Peake, 43, was born in Chichester and worked as an army helicopter pilot and later a helicopter test pilot before being selected for the European astronaut corps in 2009. Until his selection, the British government had a policy that opposed the funding of human space flight. His trip to the space station comes 24 years after Helen Sharman, a chemist from Sheffield, became the first Briton in space at the age of 27. She flew to the Russian Mir space station as part of a privately-funded venture. | Peake, 43, was born in Chichester and worked as an army helicopter pilot and later a helicopter test pilot before being selected for the European astronaut corps in 2009. Until his selection, the British government had a policy that opposed the funding of human space flight. His trip to the space station comes 24 years after Helen Sharman, a chemist from Sheffield, became the first Briton in space at the age of 27. She flew to the Russian Mir space station as part of a privately-funded venture. |
| Related: Preparing the Soyuz spaceship for launch - in pictures | Related: Preparing the Soyuz spaceship for launch - in pictures |
| David Southwood, former director of science at the European Space Agency, watched the launch from London. “It was terrific. To my eyes it looked close to picture perfect. A lovely day with bright blue skies. It was really emotional. The whole of the tradition echoes right back to Gagarin,” he said. | David Southwood, former director of science at the European Space Agency, watched the launch from London. “It was terrific. To my eyes it looked close to picture perfect. A lovely day with bright blue skies. It was really emotional. The whole of the tradition echoes right back to Gagarin,” he said. |
| Peake’s mission, Principia, centres on dozens of scientific experiments to explore how the body adapts to space, how advanced materials form in weightless conditions, and trialling new technologies, including remote control systems for operating rovers on planetary surfaces. | Peake’s mission, Principia, centres on dozens of scientific experiments to explore how the body adapts to space, how advanced materials form in weightless conditions, and trialling new technologies, including remote control systems for operating rovers on planetary surfaces. |
| Piers Sellers, a Sussex-born scientist who moved to the US and flew three missions as a Nasa astronaut, said: “It’s wonderful to finally see an official UK astronaut go into space – something that all the rest of us have hoped for for years. I sure that Tim Peake will do a great job on station and that thousands of British kids will follow his adventure and be inspired by it. The Apollo programme did that for me.” | Piers Sellers, a Sussex-born scientist who moved to the US and flew three missions as a Nasa astronaut, said: “It’s wonderful to finally see an official UK astronaut go into space – something that all the rest of us have hoped for for years. I sure that Tim Peake will do a great job on station and that thousands of British kids will follow his adventure and be inspired by it. The Apollo programme did that for me.” |