0:00:03 > 0:00:06I'm a doctor, and I work in some pretty extreme environments.
0:00:06 > 0:00:10But I also work with Nasa trying to keep astronauts healthy
0:00:10 > 0:00:12in the most extreme environment of all.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14If we want to explore the cosmos
0:00:14 > 0:00:18then we're going to have to learn how to survive in space.
0:00:45 > 0:00:46APPLAUSE
0:01:03 > 0:01:05Thank you. Sorry I'm late.
0:01:05 > 0:01:08I had to hitch a ride with some friends to beat the traffic.
0:01:08 > 0:01:12Welcome to the 2015 Christmas Lectures.
0:01:12 > 0:01:17This year's theme is how to keep astronauts like Tim Peake alive
0:01:17 > 0:01:20in space. So let's start at the very beginning.
0:01:20 > 0:01:25If you're going to survive being in space,
0:01:25 > 0:01:28you've first got to survive getting to space,
0:01:28 > 0:01:31which means surviving something that feels a bit like this.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33BOOM, AUDIENCE GASPS
0:01:36 > 0:01:38LAUGHTER
0:01:38 > 0:01:41APPLAUSE
0:01:48 > 0:01:49Now, that was just...
0:01:49 > 0:01:53That was just a balloon filled with some hydrogen and oxygen,
0:01:53 > 0:01:56and that's just a tiny fraction of the energy it takes
0:01:56 > 0:01:58to hurl people and objects into space.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00And that's the truth of this endeavour.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03It's at the limits of all our capability.
0:02:03 > 0:02:05It takes the edge of everything we have
0:02:05 > 0:02:08in science, technology and engineering
0:02:08 > 0:02:09to make that happen.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12Now, when I was a doctor and I used to work with Nasa
0:02:12 > 0:02:15I thought there would be plenty for me to do on my own.
0:02:15 > 0:02:19But in fact, you need an army of thousands if not tens of thousands
0:02:19 > 0:02:24of people to protect these crews as they go about their business.
0:02:24 > 0:02:26And perhaps the most amazing thing of all
0:02:26 > 0:02:30is that there are people who are prepared to ride fireballs like that.
0:02:30 > 0:02:35One in particular, and his name is Tim Peake.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38The first British astronaut for 25 years.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42It's been a quarter of a century since our first British astronaut,
0:02:42 > 0:02:44Helen Sharman, went into space,
0:02:44 > 0:02:47and now we have Tim aboard the space station
0:02:47 > 0:02:50and he's been super-busy, but he's taken the time
0:02:50 > 0:02:53to send us here at the Royal Institution
0:02:53 > 0:02:57a very special message, and we'll have a look at that now.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59Hi, Kevin, and hello to everybody in the audience
0:02:59 > 0:03:02at the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures.
0:03:02 > 0:03:04I'm Tim Peake, and by the time you see this message,
0:03:04 > 0:03:07I'll be 400km above the Earth's surface
0:03:07 > 0:03:09on the International Space Station.
0:03:09 > 0:03:13We've learnt an awful lot about human space flight since 1961,
0:03:13 > 0:03:15but we still have a huge amount yet to learn.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18That's why I'm really excited and delighted that the topic
0:03:18 > 0:03:21of this year's Royal Institution Christmas Lectures
0:03:21 > 0:03:24is all about living and working in space.
0:03:24 > 0:03:26So, um, I'd just better get changed, really,
0:03:26 > 0:03:29into something a bit more appropriate.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31Right up here, this is our Mission Control,
0:03:31 > 0:03:34we're getting live information from the space station.
0:03:34 > 0:03:36You can see some very beautiful pictures there.
0:03:36 > 0:03:38Who saw Tim Peake's launch?
0:03:38 > 0:03:41I watched it. I try to go to a launch whenever I can.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43Unfortunately, I couldn't get to Tim's launch
0:03:43 > 0:03:46because I was here preparing for these lectures,
0:03:46 > 0:03:47so I had to send someone in my stead,
0:03:47 > 0:03:51and that was possibly the only person on the planet
0:03:51 > 0:03:54who's more excited than me about launching things into space,
0:03:54 > 0:03:59and that is planetary scientist Professor Monica Grady.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03Hi, Kevin, hi, people back at the Royal Institution lecture theatre!
0:04:03 > 0:04:06It's coming, and here it is, you can see it!
0:04:06 > 0:04:08Here it is! It's huge!
0:04:08 > 0:04:11It's the rocket, the Soyuz rocket that Tim Peake's going to get into.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15We're here in Baikonur, a really, really historic place.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18It's the place where Yuri Gagarin set off from,
0:04:18 > 0:04:20the first man in space.
0:04:20 > 0:04:22The boosters are just going past now.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25We've got the bit where all the fuel tanks are,
0:04:25 > 0:04:29and then the little pod capsule where the astronauts will be.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32It travels a lot faster than I thought it was going to.
0:04:32 > 0:04:33Sorry, I know Alex is filming me,
0:04:33 > 0:04:37but I'm going to take a picture as well because I want to record this.
0:04:37 > 0:04:41Kevin, I'm really, really sorry you can't be here.
0:04:41 > 0:04:42Honest.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45Thank you for giving me the opportunity to come and share
0:04:45 > 0:04:49this amazing, exciting atmosphere with you,
0:04:49 > 0:04:51because it's a historic moment.
0:04:51 > 0:04:56So I guess I'll sign off, and see you then! Bye!
0:04:56 > 0:04:58APPLAUSE
0:05:02 > 0:05:06So, er, she's very excitable, that Professor Grady, isn't she?
0:05:06 > 0:05:09But she's got a right to be excited. It is exciting.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13But it's also very, very lethal.
0:05:13 > 0:05:14And to help explain why,
0:05:14 > 0:05:18I'm going to need at least two volunteers here.
0:05:18 > 0:05:23OK. Let's go up here, let's have you,
0:05:23 > 0:05:26and...how about you, here?
0:05:26 > 0:05:29OK, come down and stand here.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31APPLAUSE
0:05:31 > 0:05:35OK, now stand here and face the crowd.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38Now, what's your name?
0:05:38 > 0:05:40- You're...?- Fred.- Fred.- Yes.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42- Fred and...?- Adam.
0:05:42 > 0:05:44Fred and Adam. Brilliant. Fred and Adam,
0:05:44 > 0:05:47I'm going to turn you into rocket launchers.
0:05:47 > 0:05:49And I know you don't immediately believe me, but I really am.
0:05:49 > 0:05:51We're going to stand behind our rockets,
0:05:51 > 0:05:53which look suspiciously like sandbags.
0:05:53 > 0:05:56Fred, if you stand behind this one, Adam, if you stand here. OK.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59So first of all, prepare your rocket launcher.
0:05:59 > 0:06:01Your right hand like this.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04Good. OK. Now, what I want you to do, when I say go,
0:06:04 > 0:06:08is to chuck this bag as far across there as you can.
0:06:08 > 0:06:11Try not to hit the front row over there or the cameraman, all right?
0:06:11 > 0:06:14Ready, Adam? We're going to count you in. Everyone...
0:06:14 > 0:06:17Three, two, one - go!
0:06:17 > 0:06:19OK.
0:06:19 > 0:06:21It's a pretty heavy bag, isn't it?
0:06:21 > 0:06:23Fred, let's see if you can get it a bit further.
0:06:23 > 0:06:26Yours is a bit lighter, actually. Three, two, one, go!
0:06:28 > 0:06:30Very impressive.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32APPLAUSE
0:06:39 > 0:06:42Look, I told you I'd turn you into rocket launchers,
0:06:42 > 0:06:44and you may have expected those to go into orbit.
0:06:44 > 0:06:46They were trying to go into orbit.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49Everything you throw, as it turns out, wants to go into an orbit.
0:06:49 > 0:06:52It's just that the Earth gets in the way.
0:06:52 > 0:06:54Now, when you threw your bag, Adam,
0:06:54 > 0:06:56it came and it landed here.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59Fred, when you threw yours a little bit harder,
0:06:59 > 0:07:01shallower arc, further, and landed here.
0:07:01 > 0:07:04So it would have gone in orbit around the centre of mass of the Earth
0:07:04 > 0:07:06but the Earth just got in the way.
0:07:06 > 0:07:10And this is something that someone realised a long time ago.
0:07:10 > 0:07:14Fred, Adam, thank you so much, why don't you go back to your seats?
0:07:14 > 0:07:16APPLAUSE
0:07:16 > 0:07:20So what scientists realised more than 300 years ago,
0:07:20 > 0:07:22and one scientist in particular,
0:07:22 > 0:07:25was that if you could throw something hard enough
0:07:25 > 0:07:28it would travel in a long enough and shallow enough arc
0:07:28 > 0:07:31that it would fall and never again hit the planet.
0:07:31 > 0:07:37And it would fall forever around the Earth, and that's what an orbit is.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40If you take something, instead of your arm, you take a cannon,
0:07:40 > 0:07:41as we have in this diagram here,
0:07:41 > 0:07:44you can imagine that might have been Adam's throw,
0:07:44 > 0:07:46that might have been Fred's throw,
0:07:46 > 0:07:48and that is a proper rocket launcher
0:07:48 > 0:07:51getting you all the way around the Earth and into orbit.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54Er, and it's incredible, I think, to me,
0:07:54 > 0:07:56that more than three centuries ago
0:07:56 > 0:07:59a scientist could have had the kernel of thought
0:07:59 > 0:08:02that would get people and objects into space
0:08:02 > 0:08:04so many, many centuries later.
0:08:04 > 0:08:08That scientist, of course, was Sir Isaac Newton,
0:08:08 > 0:08:12and we know what he thought cos he wrote that stuff down in a book -
0:08:12 > 0:08:15possibly the most important, or at least one of the most important,
0:08:15 > 0:08:18books in the history of science.
0:08:18 > 0:08:23And that book was called Principia.
0:08:23 > 0:08:27Principia, with no coincidence, is the name of Tim's mission.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31This is the patch he wears on him at all times during this mission,
0:08:31 > 0:08:33and it's named after that very important book.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36And we here are the Royal Institution are extraordinarily lucky,
0:08:36 > 0:08:40because we have one of the very early editions of that book,
0:08:40 > 0:08:42and to help me show it to you,
0:08:42 > 0:08:45I'd like to introduce our curator, Charlotte.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49APPLAUSE
0:08:56 > 0:08:59Now, Charlotte this is how old, this book?
0:08:59 > 0:09:02- Er, 1713.- It comes back to 1713, and this is Principia,
0:09:02 > 0:09:06- it's a second edition...? - Second edition.- ..of that textbook.
0:09:06 > 0:09:08So this is Newton laying down his thoughts about
0:09:08 > 0:09:12how people and objects in the world behave
0:09:12 > 0:09:14and the laws of motion, and if you just come in here,
0:09:14 > 0:09:18Phil, and take a look at this, this is a page from that book.
0:09:18 > 0:09:21I have to wash my hands before I touch it otherwise I'll damage it.
0:09:21 > 0:09:23- May I take it?- Yes. - It is very beautiful,
0:09:23 > 0:09:27and we're very privileged to have it. And if you can see there,
0:09:27 > 0:09:29it is written in a language other than English.
0:09:29 > 0:09:33This is Latin, as all academic texts of the time were written.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37And I don't speak any Latin,
0:09:37 > 0:09:40but I am reliably informed that this page
0:09:40 > 0:09:42is the three laws of motion.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46And if you take your eyes down here to Lex III,
0:09:46 > 0:09:47or Lex Tres,
0:09:47 > 0:09:50that is Newton's Third Law of Motion.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53And I know, because you all pay attention at school,
0:09:53 > 0:09:56that you know that Newton's Third Law of Motion is...
0:09:56 > 0:09:59For every action there is an equal...
0:09:59 > 0:10:02ALL: ..and opposite reaction.
0:10:02 > 0:10:03Wahey!
0:10:03 > 0:10:05HISSING
0:10:09 > 0:10:11OK.
0:10:11 > 0:10:13So, uh... I've always, always wanted to do that.
0:10:13 > 0:10:16That's possibly the only circumstance
0:10:16 > 0:10:20in which it's acceptable to use fire extinguishers in that way.
0:10:20 > 0:10:22Don't do that. Really, don't.
0:10:22 > 0:10:27Um, so! Newton told us over 300 years ago
0:10:27 > 0:10:30that what we need to do if we want to go into space
0:10:30 > 0:10:32is one, throw something really, really hard,
0:10:32 > 0:10:36and two, throw something that way so you can propel your vehicle
0:10:36 > 0:10:38and your crew in that direction.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41And the question here is, what is it that you throw?
0:10:41 > 0:10:45And the answer is fuel out of a rocket.
0:10:45 > 0:10:51Er, and rocket fuel is extraordinarily dangerous,
0:10:51 > 0:10:52but we've managed to get some.
0:10:52 > 0:10:55This is rocket fuel, this is real rocket fuel,
0:10:55 > 0:10:58and it's pretty explosive. Have a quick smell of that.
0:10:58 > 0:10:59Rocket fuel.
0:11:01 > 0:11:03Rocket fuel. Have a smell.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06OK, so very, very dangerous, rocket fuel.
0:11:06 > 0:11:11So this stuff, long chains of carbon atoms and hydrogen joined together,
0:11:11 > 0:11:13and the energy between those bonds
0:11:13 > 0:11:18you let go - oh, yes - before you make it become the stuff
0:11:18 > 0:11:21that sends people and objects into space.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25Rocket fuel is the sort of stuff that, you know,
0:11:25 > 0:11:28if you're around when it goes wrong,
0:11:28 > 0:11:30you tend to not be around for much longer.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32So...you all right?
0:11:32 > 0:11:34Ready? Here we go.
0:11:35 > 0:11:36Ooh. Better stamp that one out.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38OK, OK, OK. We'll go again,
0:11:38 > 0:11:40LAUGHTER we'll go again, we'll go again.
0:11:40 > 0:11:41OK, OK, OK, here we go.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47All right, so of course, I was happy to do that,
0:11:47 > 0:11:51because of course, this stuff is engineered to be safe
0:11:51 > 0:11:53under these circumstances.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55That's what you want out of your rocket fuel.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58That's a very vital part of Tim's survival in space.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01This is what you want rocket fuel to do - you want it to be safe
0:12:01 > 0:12:04on the pad under these conditions, before you light it,
0:12:04 > 0:12:06and let it be everything it can be
0:12:06 > 0:12:09before you let it liberate all of its energy.
0:12:09 > 0:12:12And it is engineered very specifically to do that.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15They take kerosene, they refine it very carefully,
0:12:15 > 0:12:17they take out some of the lighter fractions,
0:12:17 > 0:12:19so some of the shorter chain molecules,
0:12:19 > 0:12:20so it's not so volatile,
0:12:20 > 0:12:23which means that I can't get it going like that.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27Now, the question is, what can I do
0:12:27 > 0:12:30to make that be everything it can be
0:12:30 > 0:12:32and release its chemical potential.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34And I am not going to try and light rocket fuel here.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37Don't ever do this, by the way, with any...
0:12:37 > 0:12:41Any fuel that you might find around you, by the way, in the house.
0:12:41 > 0:12:46Petrol, chip fat - it will ruin your entire day.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48We're going to do this demonstration
0:12:48 > 0:12:49with a fuel that's slightly more gentle
0:12:49 > 0:12:52and that you're more familiar with,
0:12:52 > 0:12:54and that is the great British biscuit.
0:12:54 > 0:12:56Now, you use this as fuel,
0:12:56 > 0:12:59and you use it to power yourselves.
0:12:59 > 0:13:03I'm going to use it to show you that if you get the right conditions,
0:13:03 > 0:13:08you can get quite boring things to release a fair amount of energy.
0:13:08 > 0:13:10Why couldn't I get that rocket fuel going?
0:13:10 > 0:13:14It's because I was probably missing the vital elements
0:13:14 > 0:13:17of the fire triangle. Now, you know you need some fuel,
0:13:17 > 0:13:21I've got some fuel. And I did have some oxygen in the air around me,
0:13:21 > 0:13:24but I didn't have enough heat.
0:13:24 > 0:13:28So you need fuel, you need heat, and you need oxygen,
0:13:28 > 0:13:31and then you can get the stuff going.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33So I've got my fuel, a bit of oxygen,
0:13:33 > 0:13:38er, I've got my heat here, I'll get these going.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41Ooh. I should put some goggles on, shouldn't I, really?
0:13:41 > 0:13:44You never know. OK, here we go.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47So heat, oxygen, fuel...
0:13:48 > 0:13:49Very disappointing.
0:13:49 > 0:13:52And you're probably sitting there thinking, "I knew that,
0:13:52 > 0:13:55"I knew the biscuits weren't going to do anything exciting,
0:13:55 > 0:13:57"because biscuits aren't very exciting."
0:13:57 > 0:13:59But that's the thing.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02I had fuel, and I had heat,
0:14:02 > 0:14:06and I had some oxygen - there's 21% oxygen in the air that we breathe.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09But that's not enough oxygen. To get this to be everything it can be
0:14:09 > 0:14:12I need enough oxygen to soak these biscuits.
0:14:12 > 0:14:16I need to literally soak these biscuits in oxygen
0:14:16 > 0:14:20and I can only do that if I have some liquid oxygen.
0:14:20 > 0:14:24Now...here's the problem with that.
0:14:24 > 0:14:26It's quite hard to make liquid oxygen.
0:14:26 > 0:14:28We've got a set-up here that's going to do that,
0:14:28 > 0:14:30and Andy's going to help me with it.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32This is oxygen in a cylinder.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35It's what I use every day in my hospital.
0:14:35 > 0:14:38It's compressed to about 200 times the pressure
0:14:38 > 0:14:39you have here in this room now,
0:14:39 > 0:14:43so there's a good couple of thousand litres of oxygen in that.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47That oxygen is running through this tube right now, as a gas.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50The next thing is it runs into this copper pipe,
0:14:50 > 0:14:52which is very good at conducting things.
0:14:52 > 0:14:56And to get something to become a liquid when it's as a gas,
0:14:56 > 0:14:59you have to get it below its boiling point.
0:14:59 > 0:15:01And this is the problem.
0:15:01 > 0:15:06The boiling point of oxygen is -183 degrees Celsius.
0:15:06 > 0:15:08To get it to turn into a liquid from a gas,
0:15:08 > 0:15:11I have to get it colder than -183 degrees Celsius,
0:15:11 > 0:15:14and for that I need to use what is probably Andy's
0:15:14 > 0:15:18and the Royal Institution's favourite substance ever - liquid nitrogen.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21Liquid nitrogen is at -196 degrees Celsius,
0:15:21 > 0:15:25er, and so as the oxygen passes through that copper tube as a gas,
0:15:25 > 0:15:29the liquid nitrogen draws the energy out of the gas,
0:15:29 > 0:15:30it turns it into a liquid,
0:15:30 > 0:15:33and I can collect liquid oxygen in this test tube.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35And that's what's happening now.
0:15:35 > 0:15:38This is a very beautiful moment for me,
0:15:38 > 0:15:40because I use oxygen in hospitals every day,
0:15:40 > 0:15:43but I never really see it, cos it's invisible.
0:15:43 > 0:15:47I've been told in textbooks that it has this beautiful blue tinge,
0:15:47 > 0:15:49and we are going to try and see that now.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51And it's boiling away. It's boiling away
0:15:51 > 0:15:54because it's 200 degrees above its boiling point here,
0:15:54 > 0:15:58and this is what happens if you have some heat,
0:15:58 > 0:15:59have some fuel,
0:15:59 > 0:16:02and have some liquid...
0:16:04 > 0:16:05..oxygen.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07Ooh.
0:16:17 > 0:16:22And that is how you get rocket fuel to be rocket fuel.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24Now, that looked like it wanted to go somewhere,
0:16:24 > 0:16:26and that's a rocket full of biscuits.
0:16:26 > 0:16:30And I can tell you something - Tim's rocket wasn't full of biscuits.
0:16:30 > 0:16:34Tim's rocket was full of RP-1 rocket fuel,
0:16:34 > 0:16:38liquid oxygen, and enough power to light it.
0:16:38 > 0:16:39And that's the problem.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42Someone has to control that, someone has to make sure
0:16:42 > 0:16:46that those substances combine precisely at the right time
0:16:46 > 0:16:47in precisely the right amounts
0:16:47 > 0:16:49in precisely the right way
0:16:49 > 0:16:51to propel you and your crew into space
0:16:51 > 0:16:55instead of tearing your vehicle and your crew apart.
0:16:55 > 0:16:59Now, let's go back to the hours before Tim's launch
0:16:59 > 0:17:01and see how Monica's getting on.
0:17:06 > 0:17:08Hi, Kevin, hi, kids!
0:17:08 > 0:17:12It's an hour to launch and I'm here at the viewing area
0:17:12 > 0:17:15about 2km away from the rocket,
0:17:15 > 0:17:17which you can see on the horizon.
0:17:17 > 0:17:22But here, we're waiting. Place is going to be crawling with engineers
0:17:22 > 0:17:25and technicians making those last, vital checks
0:17:25 > 0:17:28before they light the blue touchpaper
0:17:28 > 0:17:29and send up this rocket
0:17:29 > 0:17:32with its highly corrosive and very, very explosive fuel.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35And it will be a big blast. Now, can you see?
0:17:35 > 0:17:39There's a little white pointy thing on the top of the rocket.
0:17:39 > 0:17:42Just underneath that is the capsule
0:17:42 > 0:17:45where Tim and Tim and Yuri will be sitting.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48So it's about an hour to go.
0:17:48 > 0:17:53We're nearly there. Really exciting - I just can't wait!
0:17:53 > 0:17:56APPLAUSE
0:18:08 > 0:18:11So let's relive that hour before launch.
0:18:11 > 0:18:15Let's take ourselves to our mission clock and let's get it going.
0:18:15 > 0:18:1860 minutes before launch, and everyone who has no business
0:18:18 > 0:18:20being on that tower is getting out of there.
0:18:20 > 0:18:22The rocket is live and the rocket is dangerous.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25When I say, "Anyone who doesn't have any business being there,"
0:18:25 > 0:18:27I mean anyone who's not riding that rocket into space.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31Let's go forwards now to 30 minutes before.
0:18:31 > 0:18:34At 30 minutes, they start to arm the launch escape rocket-
0:18:34 > 0:18:37you can see, that white pointy thing that Monica talked about on the top.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40If this goes wrong, if the rocket does explode,
0:18:40 > 0:18:44the only way to outrun the ensuing fireball is with another rocket.
0:18:44 > 0:18:48That solid rocket will light, carry the capsule up to 10,000 feet,
0:18:48 > 0:18:50pop a parachute and dump them somewhere in Kazakhstan.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53It doesn't matter where - anywhere away from that fireball.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56We're forwards again now, we're going to ten minutes,
0:18:56 > 0:18:59and at ten minutes they arm the flight recorders.
0:18:59 > 0:19:01They record the information - if there's an accident,
0:19:01 > 0:19:04there may be no-one around to tell them what happened.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07They need to find that information. And now we're at five.
0:19:07 > 0:19:09Five minutes, the astronauts are closing their visors,
0:19:09 > 0:19:13they're shutting themself away from the atmosphere of this planet,
0:19:13 > 0:19:16preparing themself for the place they're going to,
0:19:16 > 0:19:20which will not support human life even for a few seconds.
0:19:20 > 0:19:25And now we're forwards to just a minute and a half before launch,
0:19:25 > 0:19:29and what is Tim thinking? Well, here's a video
0:19:29 > 0:19:33to tell you what he thought he was going to feel like on that pad.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38In the final seconds just before countdown,
0:19:38 > 0:19:41I think rather than thinking about anything,
0:19:41 > 0:19:43I'll actually just be experiencing it,
0:19:43 > 0:19:46because by that stage, the rockets are already firing,
0:19:46 > 0:19:48it's being held to the ground,
0:19:48 > 0:19:50and you're just waiting for that liftoff,
0:19:50 > 0:19:53but you're experiencing sounds, vibration,
0:19:53 > 0:19:56and really the excitement of the launch that's about to come.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00APPLAUSE
0:20:00 > 0:20:03So that's not false bravado from Tim.
0:20:03 > 0:20:07He has no option but to experience this launch,
0:20:07 > 0:20:08because it's kind of out of his hands.
0:20:08 > 0:20:10This thing is bigger than him,
0:20:10 > 0:20:12it's bigger than his crew, it's bigger than the rocket.
0:20:12 > 0:20:14This is the army of tens of thousands of people
0:20:14 > 0:20:17who designed, built and operated this rocket,
0:20:17 > 0:20:20and it has to work to keep him safe.
0:20:20 > 0:20:22- Let's go and see Monica. - Really excited!
0:20:22 > 0:20:24We can't hear a countdown yet.
0:20:24 > 0:20:28I've got my phone out, I'm taking a picture too.
0:20:28 > 0:20:29- OVER RADIO:- Ignition.
0:20:31 > 0:20:33Do you see the gantry's gone down?
0:20:33 > 0:20:36And the noise is starting.
0:20:36 > 0:20:38ROARING
0:20:40 > 0:20:42LECTURE AUDIENCE: Seven! Six!
0:20:42 > 0:20:47Five! Four! Three! Two! One!
0:20:50 > 0:20:54Oh, wow! Wow! Wow! Wow!
0:20:54 > 0:20:55WOW!
0:20:55 > 0:20:57Wow! Wow.
0:21:01 > 0:21:05Bye-bye, Tim! Bye-bye, Tim!
0:21:13 > 0:21:15Wow.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25Can only barely hear the thunder now.
0:21:25 > 0:21:29Yes, oh, right, the boosters coming off now.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31You can see the smoke in the sky from the boosters.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35You can see the trail in the sky.
0:21:35 > 0:21:39The Soyuz rocket went straight up, vertically up,
0:21:39 > 0:21:42and then just about where that puff of steamy, smoky stuff is,
0:21:42 > 0:21:46it changed direction, it moved off over to the east.
0:21:46 > 0:21:51Now it just looks like an ordinary aeroplane trail on the sky.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53It was just amazing!
0:21:53 > 0:21:54Just to see it going.
0:21:54 > 0:21:59And it's like, I'm so happy it's gone off safely! It's fantastic!
0:21:59 > 0:22:01APPLAUSE
0:22:09 > 0:22:12Let's stop the mission clock.
0:22:12 > 0:22:16That rocket is starting to tilt over and head east. Why?
0:22:16 > 0:22:18Why is it going east?
0:22:18 > 0:22:21Well, to help explain, I'm going to need a volunteer.
0:22:21 > 0:22:24How about you? Yeah, OK, let's have you. Brilliant.
0:22:24 > 0:22:25Brilliant.
0:22:25 > 0:22:28APPLAUSE
0:22:30 > 0:22:32Come and stand here.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34- And what's your name?- Mia.- Mia.
0:22:34 > 0:22:36Mia, OK. Mia, I'm going to turn you
0:22:36 > 0:22:37into our launch controller at Baikonur.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39Come and stand in your station.
0:22:39 > 0:22:41This is our very expensive launch station here.
0:22:41 > 0:22:46Er, and here at the RI we have our own International Space Station.
0:22:46 > 0:22:51It took less than 15 years and 150 billion to build.
0:22:51 > 0:22:55If you would take yourself into orbit, Cosmonaut John.
0:22:55 > 0:22:59And so, Mia, we're going to launch ourselves into that dish.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02Now, these rockets have all the energy they need
0:23:02 > 0:23:04to get into that space station, OK?
0:23:04 > 0:23:06All we've got to do is launch, OK?
0:23:06 > 0:23:10When I count you in, you're going to hit this lever across that way, OK?
0:23:10 > 0:23:12Give it a good whack. Ready?
0:23:12 > 0:23:15Three! Two! One!
0:23:15 > 0:23:16Go!
0:23:18 > 0:23:21Oh, dear. Now... that's nothing,
0:23:21 > 0:23:24you didn't do anything wrong there. Your launch was perfect.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26And there's nothing wrong with the rockets either.
0:23:26 > 0:23:31They have enough energy to get to the space station -
0:23:31 > 0:23:35but only if they borrow a little bit of extra energy from somewhere else.
0:23:35 > 0:23:40And that energy is borrowed from the rotation of the planet.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43Now, this is our lovely map of the Earth
0:23:43 > 0:23:45on top of this launch station.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48At the poles, when the Earth is turning,
0:23:48 > 0:23:50the Earth isn't turning very quickly.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53As you get down towards the equator,
0:23:53 > 0:23:55the speed of rotation is going pretty fast.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57It's going about 1,000 miles an hour.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00And if you launch towards the east,
0:24:00 > 0:24:04as the Earth rotates from west to east you can get some of that energy.
0:24:04 > 0:24:05So if you launch from the pole
0:24:05 > 0:24:08you can't borrow much energy cos the Earth's not spinning very much.
0:24:08 > 0:24:10If you're silly enough to try and launch
0:24:10 > 0:24:12against the direction of rotation of the Earth,
0:24:12 > 0:24:15then you're going to be in even worse shape.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18The best place to launch from is where this red rocket is.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21Launching with the rotation of the Earth, towards the east.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24What we were missing before was the spin of the Earth.
0:24:24 > 0:24:27So this time I'm going to spin the Earth and I'll help you launch it.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29There's going to be no countdown
0:24:29 > 0:24:32because they don't really do countdowns in Russia. OK, ready?
0:24:32 > 0:24:33Here we go.
0:24:36 > 0:24:37Yeah! All right!
0:24:37 > 0:24:40Well done. Thank you, Mia.
0:24:40 > 0:24:41APPLAUSE
0:24:45 > 0:24:48And it's incredible to watch that go
0:24:48 > 0:24:50as it launches out there towards the east.
0:24:50 > 0:24:52Impossible to imagine -
0:24:52 > 0:24:56but we don't need to imagine. We can ask someone who's actually done it.
0:24:56 > 0:24:59It's my great pleasure to introduce a veteran astronaut
0:24:59 > 0:25:01who's flown in space twice,
0:25:01 > 0:25:05he's spent more than 211 days in space in total,
0:25:05 > 0:25:07he's been aboard the International Space Station.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10He's a doctor, but he's also a Nasa astronaut -
0:25:10 > 0:25:13it's my great pleasure to introduce my friend and colleague
0:25:13 > 0:25:15Dr Mike Barratt.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17APPLAUSE
0:25:27 > 0:25:31Hang on, Kevin. I actually need to fire up this iThingy,
0:25:31 > 0:25:36because we've actually just had a tweet from the space station,
0:25:36 > 0:25:38from astronaut Tim Peake,
0:25:38 > 0:25:40who wanted to wish Dr Fong
0:25:40 > 0:25:42good luck with the Christmas Lectures,
0:25:42 > 0:25:44- and he's really excited to be part of it from space.- Wow.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46So, a tweet from space.
0:25:46 > 0:25:48That is my first ever tweet
0:25:48 > 0:25:51from the space station, I think. Wow. Thank you, Tim!
0:25:51 > 0:25:55- APPLAUSE - Surprise!
0:26:01 > 0:26:04I don't know if I'm more shocked to get a tweet from Tim
0:26:04 > 0:26:07or to know that astronauts get onto Twitter from space stations.
0:26:07 > 0:26:10But never mind! You've done that for real, you've launched like that.
0:26:10 > 0:26:11Just tell me what it's like
0:26:11 > 0:26:13as it tips over and starts heading out east.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16Well, launching on a rocket is a great experience I hope all of you
0:26:16 > 0:26:19get to experience one day. It's very possible.
0:26:19 > 0:26:21The Soyuz is very different from the Space Shuttle.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24The Soyuz uses these very well-behaved liquid boosters,
0:26:24 > 0:26:27and after the engines light, you sit there, you vibrate,
0:26:27 > 0:26:30you shake, you hear the roar of the engines below you,
0:26:30 > 0:26:32but actually when you lift off it's very gentle.
0:26:32 > 0:26:35In fact, I wasn't even aware that we had lifted off
0:26:35 > 0:26:38until I looked at my clock start to count up from zero
0:26:38 > 0:26:40to tell me that we have left the Earth.
0:26:40 > 0:26:42Is that true, that you had to watch the mission clock
0:26:42 > 0:26:44to know that liftoff had happened?
0:26:44 > 0:26:47For those first few seconds, that's absolutely right.
0:26:47 > 0:26:49But then you start to build G-forces.
0:26:49 > 0:26:51Because when you think about it,
0:26:51 > 0:26:54you have to go from 0 to 17,500 miles an hour
0:26:54 > 0:26:55in about nine minutes or so.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58So you have to start accelerating, and after a while
0:26:58 > 0:27:01you're going to get more than 3 Gs,
0:27:01 > 0:27:03which means the forces through your chest
0:27:03 > 0:27:05make you weigh three times your body weight.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08- That's all the acceleration pushing through as you launch.- Absolutely.
0:27:08 > 0:27:11- And so you end up weighing three times as much.- That's right.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14Fortunately we're strapped into our seats
0:27:14 > 0:27:17so we don't have to feel that too much, but if you lift your arm,
0:27:17 > 0:27:19it weighs three times more than you thought,
0:27:19 > 0:27:22and it feels pretty weird. But for me it was very special
0:27:22 > 0:27:25because about two-and-a-half minutes into flight,
0:27:25 > 0:27:28the outer shroud over the spacecraft blows away,
0:27:28 > 0:27:31and sunlight streams into the capsule. And I couldn't lift myself,
0:27:31 > 0:27:33but I lifted my arm, and I had a little wrist mirror,
0:27:33 > 0:27:35and we were already 100km high
0:27:35 > 0:27:38and I saw the clouds way below me, getting smaller,
0:27:38 > 0:27:40so that's when you really know you've left the planet.
0:27:40 > 0:27:42That sounds absolutely incredible.
0:27:42 > 0:27:45If it's all right, we'll keep you here, we'll see you later,
0:27:45 > 0:27:47but for now, astronaut Mike Barratt.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49APPLAUSE
0:27:56 > 0:27:58So as we relive this mission,
0:27:58 > 0:28:01the crew are still racing away from the Earth
0:28:01 > 0:28:03and they're leaving behind everything they take for granted
0:28:03 > 0:28:06in the way of natural life support here on this planet.
0:28:06 > 0:28:09And that is a perilously thin layer.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13And over here, we are going to look at a good illustration
0:28:13 > 0:28:15of just how thin that layer is.
0:28:15 > 0:28:18Now, Alouette is an artist - hi, Alouette -
0:28:18 > 0:28:20from the Royal College of Art.
0:28:20 > 0:28:24To give you an impression of just how thin the layer of atmosphere is
0:28:24 > 0:28:27that supports all life on Earth, have a look at this.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30This is a football that's 22cm across?
0:28:30 > 0:28:33Yeah, well, I don't know, it's a normal football size.
0:28:33 > 0:28:36So I think that's regulation size, and I asked you to paint
0:28:36 > 0:28:39a layer of paint on top of this beautiful map of the world
0:28:39 > 0:28:42you're finishing off here, to show the atmosphere as it would be.
0:28:42 > 0:28:44So how thick is your paint there?
0:28:44 > 0:28:47Well, probably less than a millimetre. It's very thin.
0:28:47 > 0:28:48So if the Earth were a football
0:28:48 > 0:28:51and if you painted it and you painted on that atmosphere,
0:28:51 > 0:28:54the atmosphere in which we live, on which we depend,
0:28:54 > 0:28:57would be less than a millimetre thick.
0:28:57 > 0:29:00It's not a biosphere. We think of it as a biosphere,
0:29:00 > 0:29:03but it is in fact a biofilm.
0:29:03 > 0:29:05It's smeared across the surface of the planet
0:29:05 > 0:29:07the way that Alouette has smeared this paint
0:29:07 > 0:29:10across the surface of this football.
0:29:10 > 0:29:11That is what you depend upon.
0:29:11 > 0:29:14Alouette, thank you so much, it's very beautiful.
0:29:14 > 0:29:16- I can't wait to see it finished. Thank you.- Thanks.
0:29:16 > 0:29:18APPLAUSE
0:29:21 > 0:29:23And when you're on your way into space,
0:29:23 > 0:29:25life gets hard very, very quickly.
0:29:25 > 0:29:29It gets hard even before you've left that really thin layer.
0:29:29 > 0:29:32I know, because I know someone who's been right up to the edge of it.
0:29:32 > 0:29:36Er, I am going to introduce you to the man who has survived
0:29:36 > 0:29:40with the lowest level of oxygen in his bloodstream
0:29:40 > 0:29:43of any human being in the world.
0:29:43 > 0:29:46I'd like to introduce you to my good colleague and friend,
0:29:46 > 0:29:49intensive care doctor, Everest summiteer,
0:29:49 > 0:29:51Dr Dan Martin.
0:29:51 > 0:29:53APPLAUSE
0:29:55 > 0:29:57How are you?
0:30:04 > 0:30:05Now, Dan is a doctor,
0:30:05 > 0:30:07but in 2007, he climbed to the summit of Everest
0:30:07 > 0:30:09and did some crazy experiments.
0:30:09 > 0:30:11You are dressed as you were when you did that.
0:30:11 > 0:30:15This is the suit I wore to the summit of Everest in 2007.
0:30:15 > 0:30:18A down suit to keep us warm up there on the summit.
0:30:18 > 0:30:20And this is your oxygen as well.
0:30:20 > 0:30:23Yeah, an oxygen bottle you'd put in your backpack
0:30:23 > 0:30:25and an oxygen mask to breathe there,
0:30:25 > 0:30:27cos the air is just so thin at the summit.
0:30:27 > 0:30:29And you did a crazy experiment up there.
0:30:29 > 0:30:31What did you do?
0:30:31 > 0:30:33Well, we wanted to know how much oxygen there was in our blood
0:30:33 > 0:30:36when we were close to the summit of Everest.
0:30:36 > 0:30:39So we took blood samples from each other near to the summit,
0:30:39 > 0:30:40sent them to an analyser
0:30:40 > 0:30:43and worked out just how little oxygen there was in our blood.
0:30:43 > 0:30:45And in hospital we measure the amount
0:30:45 > 0:30:48of oxygen in your bloodstream to see how well you are.
0:30:48 > 0:30:51Now, for people in this lecture theatre now,
0:30:51 > 0:30:53if we measured the pressure of oxygen in their arteries,
0:30:53 > 0:30:56so that's how we measure the amount of oxygen in your arteries,
0:30:56 > 0:30:57what would we find?
0:30:57 > 0:31:01The average pressure of oxygen in people's arteries here
0:31:01 > 0:31:04- would be about 10-12? - Somewhere between ten and 12, yeah.
0:31:04 > 0:31:08So for normal, healthy people let's say it's ten kilopascals of pressure.
0:31:08 > 0:31:10At the point at which someone's sick enough on the ward
0:31:10 > 0:31:13to start calling Dan or me down from Intensive Care
0:31:13 > 0:31:15to scoop them up and stick them on a life-support machine
0:31:15 > 0:31:17and rescue them by giving them more oxygen
0:31:17 > 0:31:20and putting them on a ventilator, you're at how much?
0:31:20 > 0:31:22Six is where I'd really get worried.
0:31:22 > 0:31:23About six we're super-worried
0:31:23 > 0:31:25and you're calling the Intensive Care doctor.
0:31:25 > 0:31:28What was the level of oxygen in your bloodstream
0:31:28 > 0:31:29- at the summit of Everest?- 2.5.
0:31:29 > 0:31:31LAUGHTER
0:31:31 > 0:31:35- And that's a crazy low value. - Really low.
0:31:35 > 0:31:41- And it is bizarre that you're still alive, frankly.- Thank you!
0:31:43 > 0:31:47It's the lowest recorded oxygen level in any human being?
0:31:47 > 0:31:51I believe so. We've never seen any lower, so that record remains.
0:31:51 > 0:31:54It's pretty uncomfortable up there
0:31:54 > 0:31:56and this is a huge amount of time you have to spend adapting to it.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59Well, I can see you're getting quite warm in your down suit.
0:31:59 > 0:32:01- Good for Everest, not good for the Royal Institution.- No!
0:32:01 > 0:32:03- Thank you very much, Dr Dan Martin. - Thank you.
0:32:03 > 0:32:05APPLAUSE
0:32:12 > 0:32:13That's a crazy story from Dan
0:32:13 > 0:32:16and it's amazing that he is alive at all.
0:32:16 > 0:32:20To show you just how bad it is as you go out through the atmosphere,
0:32:20 > 0:32:24let's go back to our mission clock. They're moving now.
0:32:24 > 0:32:27They've gone beyond the summit of Everest at around 9km.
0:32:27 > 0:32:31They've got up to 18km - 18,000 metres, 63,000 feet -
0:32:31 > 0:32:33and that's an important boundary.
0:32:33 > 0:32:37And to show you why, I'm going to need a couple of volunteers.
0:32:37 > 0:32:38Let's have two volunteers.
0:32:38 > 0:32:40I'm going to have to try and go up here for this one.
0:32:40 > 0:32:43OK, stand up for me.
0:32:43 > 0:32:46Go on. Yeah, why don't we have you?
0:32:46 > 0:32:49Why don't you go down there and I'll go up here this time?
0:32:49 > 0:32:50Just stand there.
0:32:50 > 0:32:53And why don't you stand up for me?
0:32:53 > 0:32:56Yeah, OK, why don't you come down as well?
0:33:03 > 0:33:07- OK. And what's your name?- Toby. - Toby and...- Alexandra.
0:33:07 > 0:33:09Alexandra, I've got something else in mind for you.
0:33:09 > 0:33:12I think we're going to have to take you away right now.
0:33:12 > 0:33:15We'll see you later I think. Bye-bye.
0:33:15 > 0:33:17Don't worry, she'll be all right.
0:33:20 > 0:33:22Now, how are you feeling?
0:33:22 > 0:33:24- Good.- Good. Good, you sure?- Yeah.
0:33:24 > 0:33:26OK. I think you should have a seat.
0:33:26 > 0:33:29Let's put this in your mouth, shall we?
0:33:29 > 0:33:32OK, so, open your mouth, stick this under your tongue,
0:33:32 > 0:33:34keep it there. All right.
0:33:34 > 0:33:36We'll come back to him later, don't worry!
0:33:38 > 0:33:43All right, OK, so one of the things Dan Martin told me
0:33:43 > 0:33:46about climbing Everest also... It's not very pleasant.
0:33:46 > 0:33:48It's pretty cold, and you can't make a decent cup of tea.
0:33:48 > 0:33:50You can't make a decent cup of tea on Everest
0:33:50 > 0:33:53because as you rise up through the atmosphere,
0:33:53 > 0:33:55the boiling point of water also falls,
0:33:55 > 0:33:57because the pressure falls.
0:33:57 > 0:34:00At the summit of Everest, the pressure has fallen so much
0:34:00 > 0:34:03that the boiling point of water is only 72 degrees Celsius.
0:34:03 > 0:34:07Now, as you keep going into the atmosphere,
0:34:07 > 0:34:11that keeps happening until you reach a point, 63,000 feet,
0:34:11 > 0:34:1218,000 metres,
0:34:12 > 0:34:14where the astronauts are now in their mission,
0:34:14 > 0:34:19where you can boil water at 37 degrees Celsius.
0:34:19 > 0:34:22And Toby, you all right?
0:34:23 > 0:34:27And your temperature is 36.8 degrees Celsius.
0:34:27 > 0:34:29Yeah, so close enough to 37.
0:34:29 > 0:34:33So you can reach a point in the atmosphere...
0:34:33 > 0:34:36BEEPING ..where Toby can boil himself.
0:34:37 > 0:34:39That sounds pretty unpleasant, doesn't it?
0:34:39 > 0:34:43So you're going to come and help now. We're not going to boil you, Toby.
0:34:43 > 0:34:45If you get to a point where your own core body temperature
0:34:45 > 0:34:48can boil you, that's bad news.
0:34:48 > 0:34:51Now, we won't boil you but we'll make a Toby model, OK?
0:34:51 > 0:34:52So here's my Toby model.
0:34:52 > 0:34:54It's not a very good model, I have to say.
0:34:54 > 0:34:58So this is my Toby head, all right? It looks a bit like you!
0:34:58 > 0:35:01And we'll have a marshmallow for your head
0:35:01 > 0:35:03because that simulates your soft tissues.
0:35:03 > 0:35:05This balloon will be like the air in your body,
0:35:05 > 0:35:08perhaps the air in your lungs. So that's about where your lungs is.
0:35:08 > 0:35:11OK, here's the important bit, here's the free water in your body.
0:35:11 > 0:35:16Now, put your finger in that water, and it's pretty cold, isn't it?
0:35:16 > 0:35:19It's about the same temperature as your body, actually, it's 37 degrees.
0:35:19 > 0:35:21So that would be like the spit in your mouth
0:35:21 > 0:35:26or the glass of water in your stomach just after you've drunk it.
0:35:26 > 0:35:29There is water elsewhere, and let's just look at this last thing.
0:35:29 > 0:35:31This is a red glass
0:35:31 > 0:35:34that's like the water that's in your bloodstream, OK?
0:35:34 > 0:35:37And that water has got a cover on it
0:35:37 > 0:35:41because the blood, at least in your arteries, has a cover on it.
0:35:41 > 0:35:43It has a muscular wall that protects it
0:35:43 > 0:35:45and kind of acts like a pressure cooker.
0:35:45 > 0:35:48And that'll stop the water from boiling a bit at least.
0:35:48 > 0:35:51Now, let's line this all up for our Toby body
0:35:51 > 0:35:53and let's get this going.
0:35:53 > 0:35:55Now, we can't send all of this into space
0:35:55 > 0:35:57but we can make it think it's gone into space.
0:35:57 > 0:36:00We do that by putting it inside this vacuum chamber
0:36:00 > 0:36:01and sucking out all the air.
0:36:01 > 0:36:03So this is a vacuum pump, Toby.
0:36:03 > 0:36:05And so if you put your hand on that switch,
0:36:05 > 0:36:07and I'll get everyone to give you a countdown,
0:36:07 > 0:36:08we're going to send this into space
0:36:08 > 0:36:11by making it, well, think it's gone into space...
0:36:11 > 0:36:13Three, two, one...
0:36:13 > 0:36:16Off we go! Come round here, Toby, have a look at this.
0:36:16 > 0:36:18So that needle is going up.
0:36:18 > 0:36:21So right now we're about to get to the highest human habitations
0:36:21 > 0:36:23at 5,000 metres.
0:36:23 > 0:36:25We're at Dan Martin's altitude - 8,848 metres -
0:36:25 > 0:36:27the summit of Everest, there.
0:36:27 > 0:36:30Have a look what's happened to your head. Oh, my goodness!
0:36:30 > 0:36:32And your lungs, they're getting bigger.
0:36:32 > 0:36:36And now we're up into well above where a plane would be.
0:36:36 > 0:36:38Oh, that was your lungs, that's very bad!
0:36:38 > 0:36:40Look at your head, it's swelling.
0:36:40 > 0:36:43There's vapour forming in the pockets inside your head
0:36:43 > 0:36:45and some air expanding there.
0:36:45 > 0:36:49Your head doesn't look very good at the moment, does it?
0:36:49 > 0:36:52Now, that process I told you about is about to happen to that water.
0:36:52 > 0:36:54Just watch very carefully.
0:36:58 > 0:36:59The pressure's dropping.
0:37:00 > 0:37:02A few bubbles. Here it goes, here it goes!
0:37:04 > 0:37:08That is water boiling as you go off into space.
0:37:08 > 0:37:10You look really unwell in there. Shall we save you?
0:37:10 > 0:37:14Shall we turn off that pump? OK, off we go!
0:37:14 > 0:37:17I think we should try and put some pressure back into the system.
0:37:17 > 0:37:18Poor Toby!
0:37:18 > 0:37:20All right... AIR WHOOSHES
0:37:22 > 0:37:24LAUGHTER
0:37:25 > 0:37:29You almost looked better before, didn't you? Oh, dear.
0:37:29 > 0:37:33OK, so hopefully I can get some of you out.
0:37:33 > 0:37:35There's not much left, I am afraid.
0:37:35 > 0:37:38This is what happens if you go into space without a spacesuit.
0:37:38 > 0:37:40Now, you saw that boiling, didn't you, as if it was in a kettle?
0:37:40 > 0:37:43You put your finger in that. It's still cold.
0:37:43 > 0:37:46So that's because boiling is not about temperature, it's a process.
0:37:46 > 0:37:49It's molecules of liquid leaving and going into the gas.
0:37:49 > 0:37:52That's what was happening there, but not because it was hot,
0:37:52 > 0:37:54because it was such a low pressure around it.
0:37:54 > 0:37:55Toby, thank you so much.
0:37:55 > 0:37:58Don't ever, ever, ever go into space without a spacesuit.
0:37:58 > 0:38:00That's the best health advice I can give you.
0:38:00 > 0:38:02Off you go. Thank you.
0:38:09 > 0:38:11All right. Now, that was ugly, wasn't it? Ooooh!
0:38:11 > 0:38:13So, this, of course,
0:38:13 > 0:38:16is a spacesuit and it is a beautiful piece of engineering.
0:38:16 > 0:38:20This spacesuit was designed for astronaut Helen Sharman
0:38:20 > 0:38:22when she went on her Juno mission 25 years ago.
0:38:22 > 0:38:24And I could tell you about it
0:38:24 > 0:38:27but I rather think that the best person
0:38:27 > 0:38:31to tell you about Helen Sharman's spacesuit is...
0:38:31 > 0:38:34Dr Helen Sharman, our first British astronaut.
0:38:34 > 0:38:37Dr Sharman. APPLAUSE
0:38:41 > 0:38:43Right, now...
0:38:53 > 0:38:55Now, Helen, it's such a great honour to meet you.
0:38:55 > 0:38:57This is a very precious item.
0:38:57 > 0:39:00It's usually stored behind glass at the National Science...
0:39:00 > 0:39:04National Space Centre in Leicester. It hasn't been into space, has it?
0:39:04 > 0:39:06No, this is a replica.
0:39:06 > 0:39:08The real spacesuit that I actually wore in space
0:39:08 > 0:39:12is in the Science Museum in London, but this is very similar.
0:39:12 > 0:39:13It's identical as far as I can see,
0:39:13 > 0:39:15down to the mirror on the left-hand side.
0:39:15 > 0:39:18- We're not allowed to touch it. - We're not allowed to touch it?
0:39:18 > 0:39:21- DR SHARMAN SHRIEKS - A real live astronaut!
0:39:21 > 0:39:24So you have found a slightly less precious spacesuit!
0:39:24 > 0:39:27So we can talk about this. Now, tell me about this suit.
0:39:27 > 0:39:29So, tell me, Helen, about this suit.
0:39:29 > 0:39:32This is one we can really touch, can't we? Very similar.
0:39:32 > 0:39:34This would have been, I assume,
0:39:34 > 0:39:36made for somebody to do their training in.
0:39:36 > 0:39:39It's... It feels quite warm, doesn't it? Yeah,
0:39:39 > 0:39:41you're getting quite warm in there.
0:39:41 > 0:39:42So normally you would wear your suit
0:39:42 > 0:39:45and if you are actually sitting inside your spacecraft,
0:39:45 > 0:39:48or indeed if you're walking to the spacecraft,
0:39:48 > 0:39:52because it gets very hot... How can you lose heat inside the spacesuit?
0:39:52 > 0:39:54There's a little bit that you might be able
0:39:54 > 0:39:55to lose heat from your face.
0:39:55 > 0:39:57It gets hot, so you've got a great big pipe here.
0:39:57 > 0:39:59Now, this plugs into a ventilator unit
0:39:59 > 0:40:02and air from the spacecraft, or from the air,
0:40:02 > 0:40:04gets pulled through the spacesuit
0:40:04 > 0:40:06and there are pipes running all the way through it,
0:40:06 > 0:40:08right down to your feet.
0:40:08 > 0:40:10They come up to just underneath your face here
0:40:10 > 0:40:12and they run right down into your gloves,
0:40:12 > 0:40:14and that tends to keep you cooler inside.
0:40:14 > 0:40:16So I really pity you just now,
0:40:16 > 0:40:19because you're actually getting very hot inside, aren't you?!
0:40:19 > 0:40:21Alexandra, how does it feel being in there?
0:40:21 > 0:40:23- Very heavy!- Very heavy!
0:40:23 > 0:40:24And Helen, what is this thing here?
0:40:24 > 0:40:27So this is a pressure regulator valve.
0:40:27 > 0:40:30So if you need to inflate the suit while you're in space...
0:40:30 > 0:40:33Let's say that unfortunately the air has let out of your spacecraft,
0:40:33 > 0:40:35you close your helmet.
0:40:35 > 0:40:38The oxygen supply comes in through this smaller pipe,
0:40:38 > 0:40:39here on the left,
0:40:39 > 0:40:43and it keeps the spacesuit inflated.
0:40:43 > 0:40:46And this pressure valve here regulates the pressure inside.
0:40:46 > 0:40:49What you really want is for the suit to be inflated
0:40:49 > 0:40:52at a pressure of about 0.4 of an atmosphere.
0:40:52 > 0:40:54Oxygen is in here, not air,
0:40:54 > 0:40:56so 0.4 of an atmosphere, but it's full of oxygen, is fine.
0:40:56 > 0:41:00But it inflates the spacesuit.
0:41:00 > 0:41:02So although it's strong on the outside,
0:41:02 > 0:41:04it becomes really stiff -
0:41:04 > 0:41:06really stiff, so it's hard to move.
0:41:06 > 0:41:09That's fine if you're just sitting in your seat like this
0:41:09 > 0:41:12but if you do need to get out and do some manoeuvres,
0:41:12 > 0:41:14it's so difficult to move, you can't.
0:41:14 > 0:41:16And you would use up so much energy.
0:41:16 > 0:41:19So what you can do is you can use this valve here
0:41:19 > 0:41:20to decrease the pressure.
0:41:20 > 0:41:23You look at the manometer on your wrist here
0:41:23 > 0:41:26and then that will show that you've decreased the pressure
0:41:26 > 0:41:30from 0.4 of an atmosphere to 0.26 atmosphere.
0:41:30 > 0:41:33Very, very low pressure. So the suit deflates a little bit.
0:41:33 > 0:41:36Still got a bit of oxygen in, so it's enough to breathe,
0:41:36 > 0:41:39it supports life, but that pressure is low.
0:41:39 > 0:41:42So low that you would get the bends if you stayed in that for very long.
0:41:42 > 0:41:44So you can do that for about a quarter of an hour
0:41:44 > 0:41:46while you do whatever it is you need to do
0:41:46 > 0:41:48and then you sit back down in your seat,
0:41:48 > 0:41:50increase the pressure again...
0:41:50 > 0:41:52You can do that repeatedly,
0:41:52 > 0:41:54but you can't keep it at 0.26 of an atmosphere for very long.
0:41:54 > 0:41:56It weighs 10kg on Earth,
0:41:56 > 0:41:59although of course it weighs nothing if you're orbiting the Earth.
0:41:59 > 0:42:01This is your mini spacecraft, really, isn't it?
0:42:01 > 0:42:04So it's like having a spacecraft inside a spacecraft.
0:42:04 > 0:42:06So it really has to support your life
0:42:06 > 0:42:08for as long as you need to get back to Earth.
0:42:08 > 0:42:09So it looks like, Alexandra,
0:42:09 > 0:42:12you're not really enjoying being inside that spacesuit.
0:42:12 > 0:42:14So I think I'm going to send you away
0:42:14 > 0:42:16to get into something a bit more comfortable!
0:42:16 > 0:42:18This is the last layer of defence astronauts have
0:42:18 > 0:42:21against the hostility of the environment around them.
0:42:21 > 0:42:23But for now, Alexandra, I think...
0:42:23 > 0:42:26It is a bit smelly, that suit! Is that how it came?
0:42:26 > 0:42:29All right, your suit doesn't smell like that I hope, Helen.
0:42:29 > 0:42:31Well, I don't know, I haven't been that close!
0:42:31 > 0:42:35- No, it's OK!- Alexandra, thank you so much. Helen, Thank you.
0:42:35 > 0:42:37APPLAUSE DROWNS OUT SPEECH
0:42:47 > 0:42:49So that's incredible.
0:42:49 > 0:42:51So we've seen our spacesuit and the crew are still on mission.
0:42:51 > 0:42:53They're still racing away from the Earth.
0:42:53 > 0:42:55They're still in the atmosphere.
0:42:55 > 0:42:57They're travelling at many times the speed of sound.
0:42:57 > 0:42:59And the atmosphere is still thick enough
0:42:59 > 0:43:01to press on that vehicle,
0:43:01 > 0:43:05to cause all sorts of shearing forces trying to rip the vehicle apart.
0:43:05 > 0:43:08And now there is so much energy around
0:43:08 > 0:43:10that threat comes from some unexpected sources.
0:43:10 > 0:43:13It's not just heat, it's not just light,
0:43:13 > 0:43:16it's vibration and it's sounds.
0:43:16 > 0:43:19Now, you don't think of those things as being destructive forces
0:43:19 > 0:43:21but they are.
0:43:21 > 0:43:23And to show you, I need a volunteer,
0:43:23 > 0:43:27preferably someone who is really, really good at singing.
0:43:27 > 0:43:29LAUGHTER
0:43:29 > 0:43:31That sorts people out!
0:43:31 > 0:43:34- Are you really good at singing? - All right.
0:43:34 > 0:43:37OK, well, let's have a go! Let's take you down.
0:43:37 > 0:43:38Brilliant, fantastic.
0:43:41 > 0:43:42Brilliant, OK.
0:43:45 > 0:43:48- Come and stand here. And what's your name?- Aoife.
0:43:48 > 0:43:54Aoife, we are going to try and use your voice to break this glass.
0:43:54 > 0:44:00All right? So over here we have a microphone, OK?
0:44:00 > 0:44:02And to help you with that note,
0:44:02 > 0:44:05we've got the same note playing in these earphones.
0:44:05 > 0:44:06SNIPPET OF NOTE
0:44:06 > 0:44:08So that should be about the right note
0:44:08 > 0:44:13so that that note corresponds with the natural frequency of this glass
0:44:13 > 0:44:14so it goes into resonance.
0:44:14 > 0:44:17So you want to get the molecules of the glass vibrating
0:44:17 > 0:44:22like the sound energy in the voice of Aoife, here,
0:44:22 > 0:44:24to show you just how destructive sound can be.
0:44:24 > 0:44:26Now, Aoife, this is really hard to do.
0:44:26 > 0:44:29I will tell you now, I had a go,
0:44:29 > 0:44:32but I'm a rubbish singer, so I'm expecting greatness from you!
0:44:32 > 0:44:35OK, so, ready, steady, go...
0:44:35 > 0:44:38# A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ah
0:44:39 > 0:44:44# A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ah. #
0:44:44 > 0:44:45Oh!
0:44:45 > 0:44:49# A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ah. #
0:44:51 > 0:44:54Oh, close! Aoife, good try, good try!
0:44:54 > 0:44:56APPLAUSE
0:44:58 > 0:45:01Aoife, there is someone who can do this,
0:45:01 > 0:45:05and that is the amazing Lucy Haken, who is my producer,
0:45:05 > 0:45:08who tells me she can, which is why we are here.
0:45:08 > 0:45:10So ladies and gentlemen, Lucy Haken!
0:45:17 > 0:45:20I would protect your ears, here, not cos Lucy is terrible at singing
0:45:20 > 0:45:22but because it's just very, very loud.
0:45:22 > 0:45:23OK, let's have a go.
0:45:26 > 0:45:32# A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ah
0:45:34 > 0:45:43# A-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ah. #
0:45:43 > 0:45:44Oh!
0:45:44 > 0:45:47CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:46:05 > 0:46:08Aoife, she broke the glass, but you're the much better singer!
0:46:08 > 0:46:10Thank you so much, cheers!
0:46:17 > 0:46:21And so, right now they are still moving on with their mission.
0:46:21 > 0:46:23They're getting up to the point
0:46:23 > 0:46:26where booster sep is about to occur.
0:46:26 > 0:46:30At one minute, 58 seconds, the boosters separate.
0:46:30 > 0:46:34And they still have to pull off one more trick to get into space.
0:46:34 > 0:46:39And to explain what trick that is, I'm going to need one volunteer.
0:46:39 > 0:46:42Hmmm...
0:46:42 > 0:46:43All right, let's go up here this time.
0:46:43 > 0:46:45How about you, right at the back there?
0:46:45 > 0:46:47Yeah, yeah, let's bring you down.
0:46:56 > 0:46:58And I need one more volunteer...
0:46:59 > 0:47:02..someone who has travelled at 25 times the speed of sound.
0:47:02 > 0:47:06Which probably means you, Mike, doesn't it? Mike Barratt.
0:47:09 > 0:47:13- Now, what's your name?- John.- John.
0:47:13 > 0:47:17John, Mike, I am going to turn you into rocket engines here.
0:47:17 > 0:47:18This is our rocket.
0:47:18 > 0:47:20These bags are your propellant
0:47:20 > 0:47:22and you know, because Isaac Newton told us,
0:47:22 > 0:47:24that if you throw your propellant out the back,
0:47:24 > 0:47:25your rocket will go in that direction.
0:47:25 > 0:47:29Now, if you get as far as this line, you have got to the space station.
0:47:29 > 0:47:33That's what we have got to do by throwing those bags out that way, OK?
0:47:33 > 0:47:35So I'm going to load you on board now and, Mike,
0:47:35 > 0:47:37if you would board at the bottom there,
0:47:37 > 0:47:42so you're the top of the rocket and Mike is at the bottom. All right.
0:47:42 > 0:47:45And try not to break the astronaut as you throw them!
0:47:45 > 0:47:48Because that's super-embarrassing when we return him to Nasa.
0:47:48 > 0:47:53- All right?- You've got my back, John. - Everyone - three, two, one,
0:47:53 > 0:47:54go!
0:48:03 > 0:48:04Oh, so close!
0:48:06 > 0:48:10Oh... What a disaster! You didn't get to the space station.
0:48:10 > 0:48:11You're floating in space.
0:48:20 > 0:48:21OK.
0:48:21 > 0:48:24So let's try that again but let's try that
0:48:24 > 0:48:27the way that Tim's rocket and the Soyuz dealt with it.
0:48:27 > 0:48:29This time, we're going to do a staging.
0:48:29 > 0:48:32So Mike is going to be the first stage
0:48:32 > 0:48:34and you're going to be the second stage, OK?
0:48:34 > 0:48:38So when I say, "Three, two, one, first stage,"
0:48:38 > 0:48:40Mike's going to chuck all his fuel out.
0:48:40 > 0:48:43When I say, "Second stage, go," you chuck your fuel out, OK?
0:48:43 > 0:48:45But that won't be until you've separated from his stage. All right?
0:48:45 > 0:48:48So you are going to get rid of the dead weight
0:48:48 > 0:48:50that is astronaut Mike Barratt ...
0:48:50 > 0:48:52LAUGHTER ..after he's got rid of his fuel.
0:48:52 > 0:48:55OK, you got that? So, three, two, one,
0:48:55 > 0:48:57first stage!
0:49:03 > 0:49:05And let's separate.
0:49:05 > 0:49:06Go, second stage!
0:49:09 > 0:49:11CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:49:16 > 0:49:18High five!
0:49:18 > 0:49:20Congratulations. You made it!
0:49:21 > 0:49:24And that's how you get yourself into space.
0:49:24 > 0:49:26You get rid of that stage. Once it's got rid of its fuel,
0:49:26 > 0:49:28you get rid of the lower stage.
0:49:28 > 0:49:30Even if Mike's aboard it! Well done.
0:49:30 > 0:49:31Good job.
0:49:37 > 0:49:39And now over to Tim.
0:49:39 > 0:49:42I'm really looking forward to experiencing the stage separations.
0:49:42 > 0:49:43You go from high-G to low-G,
0:49:43 > 0:49:45you get kind of a tumbling sensation.
0:49:45 > 0:49:48And also when the fairing is jettisoned,
0:49:48 > 0:49:50once you've left most of Earth's atmosphere,
0:49:50 > 0:49:52that is when you first get to see the sun,
0:49:52 > 0:49:55or if it's at night then you get to see planet Earth.
0:49:56 > 0:49:58And so you've both been there.
0:49:58 > 0:50:01How does that feel, that moment when you're getting out there into space?
0:50:01 > 0:50:03The actual moment that Mike explained about
0:50:03 > 0:50:07when you suddenly go from about 3G to 0G, I was...
0:50:07 > 0:50:10It was a delightful feeling because the spacesuit is so hot
0:50:10 > 0:50:12but for the first time,
0:50:12 > 0:50:14the ventilation can actually go behind your back,
0:50:14 > 0:50:17cos you're floating sort of between the seat and your straps,
0:50:17 > 0:50:20so the ventilation can go and dry some of the sweat off.
0:50:20 > 0:50:22And then when you unstrap and you just float out,
0:50:22 > 0:50:26- isn't that a wonderful free feeling? - Liberating. Absolutely.
0:50:26 > 0:50:27It's that freedom of floating.
0:50:27 > 0:50:29And of course it never stops, does it?
0:50:29 > 0:50:32It just keeps on going and going. And you forget what it's like.
0:50:32 > 0:50:35I mean, right now I can actually feel the seat beneath me.
0:50:35 > 0:50:37And I'm sure if you actually think about it,
0:50:37 > 0:50:39you can actually feel the floor beneath your feet.
0:50:39 > 0:50:43- You forget what it's like to stand up or sit down.- Yeah.
0:50:43 > 0:50:45And best memory for you of that, Mike?
0:50:45 > 0:50:48Well, fortunately the Soyuz is very small so you don't float very far.
0:50:48 > 0:50:51But the first place you float to is to the window
0:50:51 > 0:50:53and I think looking out the window to the Earth
0:50:53 > 0:50:55was absolutely my best memory.
0:50:55 > 0:50:58But also just to know that you've made it through ascent
0:50:58 > 0:51:01and you're in orbit is just a great feeling,
0:51:01 > 0:51:02because everything went right.
0:51:02 > 0:51:07Fantastic. Well, stay here, guys, we're not finished yet!
0:51:07 > 0:51:09But at least we are in orbit.
0:51:09 > 0:51:13But they're just not quite in the right orbit yet.
0:51:13 > 0:51:15The ISS is up above them,
0:51:15 > 0:51:19circling the Earth 250 miles above the surface of the Earth,
0:51:19 > 0:51:22travelling at 17,500 miles an hour.
0:51:22 > 0:51:25The Soyuz still has to climb to get there.
0:51:25 > 0:51:28And the question is, how are they going to do that?
0:51:28 > 0:51:30And that's much trickier than you think.
0:51:30 > 0:51:35And to show you that, I'm going to need the help of a volunteer.
0:51:35 > 0:51:37OK, so...
0:51:37 > 0:51:39Let's have...
0:51:39 > 0:51:41you. Let's come down.
0:51:52 > 0:51:55- Now, what's your name? - Kaushik.- Kaushik, OK.
0:51:55 > 0:51:59So this is our orbital rendezvous demonstrator. All right?
0:51:59 > 0:52:00And here's how it works.
0:52:00 > 0:52:02You pull that trigger and these cars are going round.
0:52:02 > 0:52:06Now, one is going faster round the Earth than the other one.
0:52:06 > 0:52:09Your speed and where you are in your orbit are inseparable.
0:52:09 > 0:52:13So when you're close to the Earth, you're going around the Earth faster,
0:52:13 > 0:52:16when you're high in an orbit, like the ISS is,
0:52:16 > 0:52:18you're going slower.
0:52:18 > 0:52:22So if we let this string out here,
0:52:22 > 0:52:25you can go higher but you're travelling slower again.
0:52:25 > 0:52:29So let's see if you can get yourself to dock with the ISS, all right?
0:52:29 > 0:52:31So if you turn it to the right, it goes out,
0:52:31 > 0:52:33turn it to the left, it goes down.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36All right, that's my favourite Christmas toy, that one!
0:52:36 > 0:52:37So pull the trigger and have a go.
0:52:37 > 0:52:39Now, this is what it's like,
0:52:39 > 0:52:41this is why orbital mechanics are so difficult,
0:52:41 > 0:52:45because your speed is not independent of your position.
0:52:45 > 0:52:49If you're higher in orbit, you're close to the space station
0:52:49 > 0:52:51but you're travelling more slowly so you have to time your run.
0:52:51 > 0:52:53If you want to catch up with it now,
0:52:53 > 0:52:55you have to drop down to a lower orbit.
0:52:55 > 0:52:57That's good. You've got to catch up.
0:52:57 > 0:52:59And now you're going to have to time your run
0:52:59 > 0:53:00so that you get close to the ISS.
0:53:00 > 0:53:02Now let's try and get up close because truthfully...
0:53:02 > 0:53:04Oh, here we go!
0:53:04 > 0:53:06Oooooh!
0:53:06 > 0:53:08CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:53:23 > 0:53:26I have never seen anyone do that first time!
0:53:28 > 0:53:30- Are you an astronaut by any chance? - Not really.
0:53:30 > 0:53:33Well, that was very impressive, Kaushik, thank you so much.
0:53:33 > 0:53:35Take your seat! APPLAUSE
0:53:39 > 0:53:40So that's how that works.
0:53:40 > 0:53:43That's how you manoeuvre yourself around in space,
0:53:43 > 0:53:45with that sort of reaction.
0:53:45 > 0:53:47And that's where we've got to in Tim's mission.
0:53:47 > 0:53:49We'll go forwards now,
0:53:49 > 0:53:54to six hours and 30 minutes after Tim has launched.
0:53:54 > 0:53:57And he is now approaching Space Station.
0:53:57 > 0:54:01We're going to see some film of that as they approach
0:54:01 > 0:54:02up here on the screen.
0:54:02 > 0:54:07And they're pulling close and that is Tim's vehicle approaching.
0:54:07 > 0:54:09And of course, there are two people in our audience
0:54:09 > 0:54:12who know exactly what that feels like, so I am going to ask you
0:54:12 > 0:54:16to welcome back astronauts Helen Sharman and Mike Barratt.
0:54:16 > 0:54:17Thank you.
0:54:26 > 0:54:28So this is six hours, 30 minutes,
0:54:28 > 0:54:31they're approaching the space station.
0:54:31 > 0:54:34- Do you guys remember this from your missions?- I remember.
0:54:34 > 0:54:37- You can forget it, can you?- No. - Nobody celebrates.
0:54:37 > 0:54:40Nobody in Star City celebrates the launch.
0:54:40 > 0:54:41You celebrate the docking,
0:54:41 > 0:54:44cos that's when you know that you're there safely.
0:54:44 > 0:54:45And we were actually 200km away when we knew
0:54:45 > 0:54:47that we weren't going to make it automatically
0:54:47 > 0:54:51and we took over manual. But you had a different experience, didn't you?
0:54:51 > 0:54:54So we were about a little more than 100 metres out,
0:54:54 > 0:54:57and we had a failure of one of the sensors on the engines.
0:54:57 > 0:54:59And the guidance computer didn't like it
0:54:59 > 0:55:01so it said switch over to manual and fly that in.
0:55:01 > 0:55:04And Tim's docking actually turned out
0:55:04 > 0:55:07to be much, much more nervy than anyone thought it was going to be.
0:55:07 > 0:55:10- What happened there, Mike? - So it was a very similar failure.
0:55:10 > 0:55:14In fact, the same one that we had but it was inside of 20 metres.
0:55:14 > 0:55:15So they were actually very close.
0:55:15 > 0:55:18And whenever you have two spacecraft very close together,
0:55:18 > 0:55:21you want to be sure that they're extremely tightly controlled.
0:55:21 > 0:55:23Well, the computer didn't like what it saw
0:55:23 > 0:55:26and so it told the spacecraft to back up.
0:55:26 > 0:55:27And it did, very quickly.
0:55:27 > 0:55:29In fact, if any of you watched it on TV,
0:55:29 > 0:55:31you saw it beat a very hasty retreat
0:55:31 > 0:55:33to a little bit more than 100 metres.
0:55:33 > 0:55:36And that's as close as two vehicles have ever got in that procedure
0:55:36 > 0:55:39- and had to back off.- I think that's about as close as we've come
0:55:39 > 0:55:40before we had a failed to dock.
0:55:40 > 0:55:42Now, to be sure that...
0:55:42 > 0:55:45We trained to do this and Yuri Malenchenko, the commander,
0:55:45 > 0:55:47was absolutely trained to do these manual dockings.
0:55:47 > 0:55:50And the computer switched over to manual mode
0:55:50 > 0:55:54and allowed Yuri to fly it, which he did beautifully.
0:55:54 > 0:55:56So let's go forward one more time now.
0:55:56 > 0:56:01Eight hours, 55 minutes after Tim has left the Earth.
0:56:01 > 0:56:04They've docked to the space station, done their final checks,
0:56:04 > 0:56:06and it's time to open the hatch.
0:56:06 > 0:56:10Now, both of you know what that feels like, don't you?
0:56:10 > 0:56:13Let's see what Tim thought he was going to feel like.
0:56:13 > 0:56:15Once we dock to the International Space Station,
0:56:15 > 0:56:18we've still got about two hours of leak checks to do
0:56:18 > 0:56:20to make sure everything is safe for us
0:56:20 > 0:56:23to open the hatch between the Soyuz spacecraft and the space station.
0:56:23 > 0:56:25What will be great is the fact
0:56:25 > 0:56:28that I'll be meeting Scott and Mikhail on board,
0:56:28 > 0:56:31who are already eight months into their year-long stay.
0:56:31 > 0:56:33I said goodbye to them in Star City
0:56:33 > 0:56:35and it'll be great to see them again.
0:56:35 > 0:56:37So, incredible. You've both been through that.
0:56:37 > 0:56:39I could see Scott Kelly up there.
0:56:39 > 0:56:41- He's a buddy of yours. - Yeah, he's a good friend of mine.
0:56:41 > 0:56:44- We flew together actually. - And you've been through that.
0:56:44 > 0:56:46What's it like getting aboard the space station, Mike?
0:56:46 > 0:56:48Well, the space station is huge
0:56:48 > 0:56:51and when you compare that to the tiny confines of the Soyuz,
0:56:51 > 0:56:53it is a big, dramatic change.
0:56:53 > 0:56:58All of a sudden, you're in a massive station the size of a 747,
0:56:58 > 0:57:00if any of you have been on that.
0:57:00 > 0:57:02And so all of a sudden you have a lot of room to manoeuvre
0:57:02 > 0:57:04and after two days in the Soyuz,
0:57:04 > 0:57:05it was kind of nice to have the room.
0:57:05 > 0:57:08Well, it's fantastic to see everyone aboard the space station.
0:57:08 > 0:57:10Mike Barratt, Helen Sharman,
0:57:10 > 0:57:12thank you so much for joining us tonight.
0:57:12 > 0:57:13It was fantastic to see you.
0:57:13 > 0:57:16APPLAUSE DROWNS OUT SPEECH
0:57:32 > 0:57:35And we have one final message from Tim.
0:57:37 > 0:57:38That's all for now.
0:57:38 > 0:57:39Looking forward to talking to you again
0:57:39 > 0:57:41at the next Christmas Lectures.
0:57:41 > 0:57:44Fingers crossed! Good luck.
0:57:51 > 0:57:54And that brings us to the end of the first of our lectures.
0:57:54 > 0:57:57The crew have survived launch, they've survived orbital rendezvous,
0:57:57 > 0:58:01they've survived the docking and they are safely aboard the space station.
0:58:01 > 0:58:05And next time we'll be finding out as Tim begins
0:58:05 > 0:58:09his six-month expedition aboard the International Space Station
0:58:09 > 0:58:11not just how to survive in space,
0:58:11 > 0:58:12but how to live and work there
0:58:12 > 0:58:16and what you do if something goes really, really wrong.
0:58:16 > 0:58:19And also, even more exciting
0:58:19 > 0:58:24is we'll be having the first recorded message from Tim from the ISS.
0:58:24 > 0:58:27But for now, I am Dr Kevin Fong
0:58:27 > 0:58:31and this has been How To Survive In Space.
0:58:31 > 0:58:33APPLAUSE