Principia mission logo

ESA astronaut Tim Peake’s Principia mission patch was designed by 13-year-old Troy Wood, who explains: “Principia refers to Isaac Newton’s principal laws of gravity and motion so I drew an apple because that is how he discovered gravity.

“Plus Tim is promoting healthy eating as part of his mission and apples are healthy.” Fittingly, a stylised Space Station glints in the apple.

The Soyuz rocket taking Tim into space flies over the UK as the colours of the Union Flag run along the border.

Tim will be launched to the International Space Station in November 2015 for a long-duration mission on humanity’s weightless research centre.