Tim Peake sparks future of STEM at Goodwood festival of speed

In July, The Manufacturer’s Molly Cooper attended the Goodwood Festival of Speed to check out the latest innovations at the FOS Future Labs. While there, she had the chance to chat with Tim Peake about his career, getting young people into STEM and what technologies he thinks will change the world.

Key Takeaways

Early exposure to science and technology helps spark lifelong curiosity.
STEM events provide hands-on opportunities to inspire the next generation.
Collaboration between industry, government, and education is essential.
Emerging technologies like AI, clean energy, and space-based solar will transform life on Earth and beyond. [/breakout]

FAQs

Who is Tim Peake?
What is FOS Future Labs?
What advice does Tim Peake give to students?
Which technologies will shape the future?

To many of us, Tim Peake is commonly known as the first official British male astronaut to walk in space. During his International Space Station mission, he contributed to over 250 experiments, advancing research in areas like muscle atrophy, immune response and fluid dynamics in microgravity. He also supported robotics experiments and Earth observation studies, helping refine satellite imaging and disaster response capabilities.

Yet now, Tim is a leading STEM ambassador, promoting science education and space exploration across the UK. He remains active in the space sector and advocates for future missions, including a proposed all-British ISS mission, fostering UK leadership in human spaceflight and space science.

He is also the official ambassador of the FOS Future Labs, this year presented by Randox, and was at the most recent Goodwood Festival of Speed. FOS Future Labs is an exhibition that explores technology for a better world and highlights new and emerging ideas in areas like robotics, transport and space. Here Tim chatted with the cutting-edge technology companies about their projects and engaged with the young people attending about what opportunities could lie ahead for them.

Here’s what he had to say.

Early exposure to science and technology

Reflecting on your own journey – from the British Army to piloting spacecraft – what role did early exposure to science and technology play in shaping your ambitions?

Early exposure was hugely important in terms of helping me to prepare for a career as an astronaut. When I left school, I learned to fly an aircraft, and it allowed me to relate to some of the things I was learning at school but didn’t enjoy. It helped me understand how important they were and how they were applied in other areas, outside of the classroom. When you have something you can relate to, you become much better at learning more about it.

I achieved poor grades in my A-levels, so I got my degree in flight dynamics later in life. However, learning to fly an aircraft after studying was my inspiration because I was surrounded by science and technology as well as wanting to be a test pilot – it is fundamental to have that knowledge behind you.

Exposure makes you curious. When I was in the US, serving in the US military, we were trying to integrate the Apache fleet into a fully digitised division. This was the first time they had attempted to do this and I had an instrumental role as the operations officer in doing that.

I was working with the US Air Force and the US Army to get Apaches to digitally communicate with every other vehicle on the battlefield effectively. That unlocked the ‘nerd’ within me and the ambition to become a test pilot when I returned home and learn more about science and technology in more detail.

Advice for students at STEM events

STEM events give young people hands-on experiences. What advice would you give to a young student attending who dreams of becoming an astronaut or working in space science?

As we sit right now in the FOS Future Labs exhibition, we are looking around at these young people in awe and wonder about what they are seeing. It’s brilliant because it inspires and ignites that curiosity.

“These events are important because they open doors to opportunity and help us find the talent that is out there – and it’s everywhere. We must make technology accessible and available to as many young people as possible, so they have the best opportunities in life.”

They then begin to ask questions and learn more, whether that be about flying over the moon’s surface, shaping gravity, a blob of dark matter or the deep-sea explorations we know so little about. Everything shown to them here sparks questions in their minds.

There are so many exciting careers that people could go into that are represented in the exhibits that are here and for me, that’s the aim of STEM events like this. It’s to plant those little seeds of curiosity and inspiration to allow people to dream of a career they could have.

But what’s interesting today, and perhaps different from when I was growing up, is when I’m talking to students who don’t believe they are very good at science or technology – and have greater interests in drama, literacy or art – they don’t always realise that every single career today is going to have an element of technology within it.

Everyone choosing careers right now will one day use AI within that role, no matter what they’re doing. You’re going to be using the latest computerisations, whether that’s graphics to help you with your projects, or communicating with your colleagues using software that’s utilising new and emerging technologies.

Engaging young people in science and technology

As someone who’s been a tireless ambassador for STEM, what do you believe are the most effective ways we can engage young people in science and technology?

We must look at the differences in the way young people learn, compared to previous generations. Young people nowadays get their information from a variety of different sources, such as online and YouTube. Years ago, it might have been from watching Blue Peter on the BBC.

We must try and bring industry and education together, and we’ll need the government to play a role. We must empower schoolteachers to teach relevant topics and not be swamped by the curriculum. They need to have the freedom to be creative in how they teach.

We then need people in industry who are looking at what the education sector is doing, as they are the ones who will one day require those skills in the workplace. If there’s a gap that needs to be filled, then it’s the industry’s responsibility to question what young people are being taught or not taught; whether a particular subject should be included in the curriculum and if so, how should it be introduced?

Bringing industry and education together is vital to keep the sector growing and thriving.

We need people from industry going into schools and speaking to students about topics that may seem dull and boring, but in reality are exciting, and to explain the real world situations it can be applied too.

How industry can support education

What advice would you give to industry if they are unsure about how to reach out and communicate with schools and universities?

In the UK we have Space UK which is an industry body association where your voice can be heard, which is a great organisation to be involved with.

Firstly, it’s about knowing the many different groups and associations that are out there, whichever industry you are involved in. Secondly, you need to be proactive, involved and be part of those collaborations where you have a voice.

The government will appreciate the proactivity of the industry because they are always looking for people to help with what needs to be done, and those working in it know best.

Public engagement and future of space

What role do you think public engagement events like Future Lab play in shaping the UK’s future role in global space exploration and innovation?

Events like FOS Future Lab are amazing. I remember being inspired by air shows when I was younger, and that’s what made me want to become a pilot.

“I would have loved to attend events like this as a young kid; to walk around and just be inspired by what I’ve seen and then to leave and continue to learn about robotics, AI, space or oceans.”

They allow people to be exposed to new and different parts of technology and how it might play a part in their future.

Transformative technologies for the next decade

Looking ahead, what emerging technologies do you see as most transformative for space exploration or life on Earth in the next ten years?

Everyone is talking about AI and it’s incredible, but it’s also important to put it into context. Many people only know about it from the sensationalised parts in the media – that it’s going to turn us into a utopian or dystopian society. But there is a middle ground and AI is an important tool for us all to understand its challenges and benefits. It’s incredible at analysing massive amounts of data and pattern recognition.

Yet as humans we have nuance, intuition, empathy, consciousness and we’ve got ways of using this tool to our advantage, and so it’s never going to just be one or the other. It’s about a changing landscape of humans working with AI, and how we are going to use that to maximum effect. Over the next few years AI is going to have a huge impact. The energy sector is exciting because in the next 20 to 30 years, we are going to decarbonise our energy production, which is going to have a massive impact. This is going to require a mixture of various sources; it won’t just be one golden nugget.

We already have space-based solar power moving rapidly forward, which has huge potential. Alongside that we already have wind, terrestrial, solar and tidal as well. Fusion power would also be incredible and is just around the corner.

Battery technology is also improving and being used to store power and release it at appropriate times. All of this will allow us to have 24/7 decarbonised energy.

Conclusion

Tim Peake’s journey, from Apache helicopters to space exploration, underscores the importance of curiosity, perseverance, and STEM engagement. Through initiatives like FOS Future Labs, he hopes to inspire the next generation to dream big and embrace the technologies that will shape our shared future.

Peake practice: a conversation with Tim Peake on STEM, space and future tech