Phone Home! Tim Peake's Family Reveals How the British Astronaut Called to Say Hello...but He Had to Leave a Voicemail Because They Were Out

Even though their son is making space history by being the first official British astronaut on the ISS, life doesn't stop for his family back home.His parents Nigel and Angela have revealed how the father-of-two called them from on-board the station, but had to leave a message because the pair was out of the house.Speaking to ITV News, Mr Peake said: 'It was quite surreal.

We'd popped out for about an hour to see our daughter who lives nearby, came home to an answerphone message, "Hello, this is your son from the International Space Station."'He then assured the broadcaster that that the 'message is going to stay there in perpetuity.'The call was made before Tim Peake took on his first major challenge while on the International Space Station.

Earlier today, the astronaut who has been in orbit for just six days, was left in sole charge of the US section of the station when commander Scott Kelly and flight engineer Tim Kopra step outside the airlock.During the spacewalk, which was scheduled to move a jammed robotic transport cart on the outside of the station, Major Peake is responsible for monitoring the astronauts.The spacewalk began at 13.

00GMT (08.00 ET) and within 30 minutes the astronauts had managed to repair the problem with the cart, leaving them time to conduct other maintenance work.Major Peake spent several hours before the event helping the astronauts put on and take off their spacesuits at the start and end of their extravehicular activity (EVA).

Writing on Twitter ahead of the spacewalk, the father of two said: 'Busy day on ISS today preparing possible EVA for @astro_tim & @StationCDRKelly tomorrow.'My job is to help them get out and back safely.'Major Peake is expected to take part in his own spacewalk later in his six-month mission on board the space station.

At a press conference before the weekend, he said he was looking forward to experiencing the view of the Earth from outside the space station.'When I went to the Cupola [an observatory module in the ISS] yesterday, I watched a sunset and a sunrise at different times. It was incredible,' he explained.

'To be out there on a spacewalk when that actually happens will be the most spectacular thing ever.'It takes around 90 minutes for the ISS to circle Earth one time, so astronauts get to experience 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets each day.Major Peake, a former Army test pilot, arrived at the space station on a Soyuz rocket on Tuesday and since then has mainly spent his time conducting science experiments.

Over the weekend he took his first blood sample while in orbit as part of research he is taking part in while in space which will look at the effects of microgravity on bone marrow.Major Peake also took part in his first day of cleaning on board the space station, wiping down surfaces and vacuuming up dust that floats around the space station.He has described the smell on board the space station as quite distinctive: 'It is certainly not unpleasant.

It is kind of a metallic smell. Almost chemically, not strong and not bad in any way.'Major Peake has used brief moments of downtime when he is not exercising or performing experiments to take some photographs from space.

On Sunday night he posted his second photograph from a window of the ISS, capturing the Kibo module in the foreground above the cloudy atmosphere of the Earth.However, Nasa officials decided scheduled scientific experiments on Monday would need to be put on hold to perform the emergency spacewalk.The space station's Mobile Transporter rail car was found to have jammed a few inches from its embarkation point as it was being moved to support an operation to move payloads around the space station.

It is thought the brake handles on the cart may have engaged and Nasa astronauts Kelly and Kopra will go outside the space station to latch it down.Tim Peake performed a somersault on board the space station (animation above) but said he has yet to perfect the manoeuvre, before colliding with the floor of the space station (credit: European Space Agency)Officials wanted the cart to be secured ahead of the scheduled docking of an unmanned cargo ship that is due to arrive at the ISS on Wednesday.During the three-hour spacewalk, Major Peake, along with Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Korniyenko, Yuri Malenchenko and Sergei Volkov, remained on board the ISS.

A statement by ESA said: 'Tim Peake will be heavily involved in the spacewalk as inside support to help his colleagues don their spacesuits and monitor their progress for mission control.'It is the third spacewalk for ISS commander Kelly while it will be the second for flight engineer Kopra. It is the 191st spacewalk on the ISS.

Commander Kelly was quickly able to find the problem with the robotic Mobile Transporter cart and secured it in place.The pair are now spending the rest of the installing power cables along the outside of the space station.And, if all goes well with the spacewalk, the crew are due to spend the evening watching the new Star Wars movie, The Force Awakens, from orbit.

Major Peake said: 'We are very excited about the new Star Wars movie. We are all fans up here,' he said.Major Peake has said so far he has been 'loving every minute' of his first few days on the ISS.

His first meal in space was a bacon sandwich prepared for his arrival by the space station commander Nasa astronaut Scott Kelly, who is halfway through a year on board the ISS.Posting on Twitter, Major Peake said: 'What makes a good leader? @StationCDRKelly having a hot bacon sarnie waiting as my 1st meal on ISS.

Boy that tasted good! Principia.'Major Peake added that he is slowly adapting to life on board the space station but said he was yet to perfect a somersault in microgravity that many other astronauts have performed.

Before demonstrating a backwards mid-air roll, he said: 'I definitely haven't mastered it.'He also said that perhaps the thing that has surprised him most was how black space was looking out of the windows space station away from the Earth.'The most unexpected thing was the blackness of space.

'We always talk about seeing the view of planet Earth and how beautiful it is sio you come to expect that.'When you look the opposite direction you see how dark it is. It is the blackest black and you realise how small Earth is in that black.

That was a real surprise for me.'