News / Astronaut
Bristol student selected for BBC2 astronaut show
A Bristol man is part of BBC2’s new reality show Astronauts – Do You Have What It Takes? After whittling down thousands of applicants, the show will pit the 12 successful candidates against one another in a bid to see which would be best suited to life as an astronaut.
As the series progresses, they will face a variety of trials intended to test their mental and physical fortitude. The tests will be administered and judged by former commander of the International Space Station, Chris Hadfield, who will provide the winner with a glowing reference for any future application to the world space agencies.
One of the 12 contestants is 23-year-old student Tim Gregory. “I’ve always been super interested in science,” says Tim. “Everything from clouds, to space, to geology and fossils.”
is needed now More than ever
Tim has continued to pursue this lifelong affinity with science, and is currently studying at the University of Bristol for a PhD in Cosmochemistry: a degree which sounds about as complex as you’d expect from a potential future astronaut.
“I’m incredibly lucky that I get to work in such a cutting edge academic environment,” says Tim. “We’re getting into an age now where astronauts aren’t just test-pilots from a military background. In the future, it’s going to be scientists that are going into space.”
Tim Gregory
After a gruelling application process, Tim and his 11 fellow contestants underwent six weeks of intense testing to see who had what it took. “Astronaut selection is physical, it’s intellectual, and it’s emotional at times. In those tests, often you’re completely on your own, you have very little time to prepare for them. The success of the test depended entirely on myself.”
Despite the difficulty of the process, Tim has a very positive conception of his time on the show. “The times when it didn’t go as well as I hoped I struggled with a bit, and I think I struggle with that in normal life anyway – beating myself up and ruminating about it. But the struggle was really valuable; I really surprised myself at how much I conditioned my mind to move on from it.”
Tim is by no means certain of his future career as an astronaut who enters orbit. “It’s always been a bit of a pipe dream – and it’s still a bit of a pipe dream, to be honest,” he admits. “I’m very realistic about the very small chance that I’ll actually go to space.”
Even with this uncertainty, the passion Tim has for space travel is obviously apparent. “Those images we get back from the International Space Station, seeing the Earth as it really is – a planet in the blackness of space – there’s something really moving and powerful about that. To see it with my own eyes – I don’t think anything could compare to that.”
Astronauts – Do You Have What It Takes? airs on Sundays on BBC2 at 9pm.
Read more: A fast-track career in engineering
Our top newsletters emailed directly to you
