After six months of orbiting the Earth on the International Space Station, conducting experiments, Tim Peak returned to Earth in the Soyuz TMA-19M descent model. Peake had completed approximately 3,000 orbits of the Earth covering a distance of 125 million kilometres (78 million miles). To find out more about the expedition you can visit the national Tim Peake Spacecraft Tour. It is is now at Cardiff Museum but you’d better be quick as it’s only there until the 10th February.
Tim Peake is the sixth person born in the United Kingdom to go on board the International Space Station. He is the seventh born UK person in space. While in space he conducted a series of experiments and he was the first man to run a marathon from space. He ran the 2016 London Marathon on 24th April 2016 on the International Space Station treadmill. (Incidentally the first person to run a marathon in space was a lady; Sunita Williams).
Tim Peake Spacecraft Tour
The Tim Peake Spacecraft Tour will not take you long to go round, you’ll probably have done it all in around half an hour. So if you work in Cardiff, its perfect for a lunchtime visit.
But what is there is fascinating. The descent module is so much smaller than I would ever have imagined, you wouldn’t think you could fit three people in it, never mind land in it. It looks like something our of Doctor Who, a cross between a Tardis and a Dalek. The outside charred from being heated to over 1500 degrees Celsius as it entered the Earth’s atmosphere. There is a video connection too so you can view the inside of the capsule to see what it was like inside.
The parachute is also on display. This huge parachute was used to slow their spacecraft from a speed of 287 km/h to 22 km/h.
Then there’s Tim Peake’s spacesuit which he wore during his launch and return from the International Space Station. You can then have your photo taken in a similar suit yourself.
For kids there is a short quiz sheet where they have some questions to answer on the exhibition. It was good to have and made sure that they read most of the information on show. Prior to our visit we also looked at some of the YouTube videos of Tim Peake in space to bring it alive for them.
For kids who are less interested, there is a whole heap of lego at the back of the exhibition so little ones can be kept amused while you take in all the facts. This was a great help for our 3 year old who had a very short lived interest in the exhibition. We then took turns to go round with the boys and read everything.
We loved the exhibition and it really seemed to spark the boys interest in space. Helped by watching the You Tube videos of Tim in space before we went. I’d 100% recommend you visit before its gone for good.
Cardiff Museum is on our 101 Things to do in Wales with kids, if you are looking for some inspiration on where to visit in Wales, be sure to check it out.
The Space Descent with Tim Peake
Whilst entry to the exhibition is free, for £6.00 you can also have a go at the 360° 3D virtual reality experience from Samsung. It enables you to experience what it felt like to sit inside the descent model as it made its journey back to Earth.
Additional Information on the Tim Peake Spacecraft Tour
The tour is now on its final stages. It will be at Cardiff Museum until the 10th February. If you miss it there you could catch it at Ulster Folk and Transport Museum, Belfast from 19th – 12th May
Opening Hours: Tuesday – Sunday 10:00 – 17:00 Closed Mondays (but open most bank holiday Mondays)
Address: National Museum Cardiff, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NP
Website: https:/museum.wales/cardiff
Buggy friendly / accessible: We have taken buggies in the past and have had no problem. There are lifts and most of the walk ways are flat.
Facilities: There is one larger restaurant and one small cafe. We have sampled both and they are decent enough. However, you will probably experience nicer by venturing into Cardiff. There are toilets with baby changing available.
Parking: There is parking in the neighbouring side streets with pay and display meters. Closer into Cardiff there are plenty of options for parking in the various multi storey car parks.
Also in the area – if you are combining with a trip to Cardiff, you are close to Cardiff Castle and Bute Park which are both worth visiting. For rainy days, why not combine with the Tree Top Adventure Golf in St. Davids shopping centre.
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