Dressed in a white protective suit, British astronaut Tim Peake listened attentively as technicians explained details of their new satellite, a European project in Brexit Britain. Parts for the European Space Agency-led venture come from Spain, it is built in Britain and will be taken to France for testing ahead of next year’s launch. Graham Turnock, chief executive of the UK Space Agency, is confident Britain will keep its place in ESA but is less certain about the country’s broader EU ties after Brexit in March 2019. Looking beyond Brexit, however, he pointed to increasing government funding — the UK Space Agency budget this year is £387 million (434 million euros, $537 million) — as a sign that the space sector would survive the EU divorce. “I think the UK is going to have a pretty bright future, actually, in space,” he told AFP.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer March 07, 2018 07:41 UTC