BRITAIN'S only astronaut touched down in Glasgow and encouraged youngsters to boldly go for a career in space.

Major Timothy Peake will go into space in 2015 after being just one of six people selected from 8000 applications for a job as an astronaut with the European Space Agency (ESA).

He will spend almost six months living on the International Space Station, carrying out research.

At the UK Space Conference at the SECC in Glasgow, 41-year-old Major Tim spoke to school children, university students and educators about the opportunities available in the space industry.

And while he was one of the exceptionally lucky few who landed the job every young boy dreams about, he was quick to point out the many job possibilities in the industry.

Tim, a former Apache helicopter pilot with the British Army, said: "The UK space industry has been a bit of a hidden secret for a number of years, but it employs 68,000 and is worth £9billion to the British economy every year.

"Mostly what we do best is build satellites and components and it's big business.

"We do a lot of work on solar panel and battery technology and build things like Mars Rovers."

With around two-and-a-half years until he goes into space, Tim – who is from Sussex but is based at the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne – is stepping up his preparation for what is expected to be a gruelling six months.

In 2012, he spent a week at the bottom of the ocean on a simulated asteroid exploration mission, and there were months of tests.

Tim said: "The ESA had an open application process for the six posts in 2008 and I was put through a year-long selection process.

"I was one of those who thought it would never be me, but here I am."

stef.lach@ eveningtimes.co.uk