British astronaut Tim Peake has said he hopes his space mission will generate similar excitement in the UK that the moon missions did in the US during the 1960s.

Major Peake is preparing to travel to the International Space Station next month as the first British citizen to be selected for astronaut training by European Space Agency (Esa).

He took part in a Q&A session at London's Science Museum this morning and has said he hopes his mission will inspire children into space exploration, engineering and science.

Major Peake is preparing to travel to the International Space Station next month as the first British citizen to be selected for astronaut training by European Space Agency (Esa). He took part in a Q&A session at the Science Museum this morning ahead of this mission (pictured)

During the event, Major Peake explained that he believes there is life elsewhere in the universe but doesn't believe in 'little green men', as typically depicted in films.

He said: ‘Absolutely I believe in life forms on other planets, yes, and I think we might be close to discovering microbial, single-celled life forms on Mars.

‘We are always searching for organic compounds and the potential for life on other planets.

‘So yes, I believe in life on other planets, but not little green men in our solar system, no.’

Asked by the BBC earlier this week if he expected to rekindle public enthusiasm to the level of the Apollo missions of the 1960s and 70s, he added: 'I hope it does have an effect like that to some degree.'

And he added: 'I was really keen that we make the absolute most of this mission to encourage students and young people to get involved in technology and engineering, and to study STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects that will set them up for future careers in those industries.

Major Peake will embark for a six-month stay on the space station on 15 December. During his mission he will perform more than 30 experiments for the Esa as well as participating in many others

Speaking ahead of his six-month mission on board the International Space Station, Tim Peake recenlty revealed how making sure the WC system remains intact will take up a large chunk of his mission

'I think it is really important to reach out to our younger generation and to try to encourage them to take up science, technology, engineering and mathematics as subjects. We have a skills shortage at the moment, and we desperately need more graduates with those backgrounds.'

Major Peake will embark for a six-month stay on the space station on 15 December.

During his mission he will perform more than 30 experiments for the Esa as well as participating in many others.

The UK Space Agency will hold four launch-day events and more than a dozen smaller farewell events ahead of the December blast-off.

The celebratory launch events will allow more than 10,000 members of the public to participate in science and outreach activities, and will also air live footage of Mr Peake's launch and docking.

The 43-year-old is a former Army helicopter pilot and joined the space agency in September 2009 and completed his basic training in November 2010.

There are currently two toilets aboard the station (one pictured) but both are nearly 15 years old and have a tendency to break. Major Peake discussed the problem as he was questioned by children from a London primary school in a live link to Nasa's Johnson Space Centre in Houston, Texas

Major Peake will embark for a six-month stay on the space station on 15 December and will perform more than 30 experiments for the European Space Agency (Esa). He is the first British citizen to be selected for astronaut training by the space agency

His forthcoming mission has been called Principia, after Sir Isaac Newton's historic text Naturalis Principia Mathematica, describing the principal laws of motion and gravity.

Travelling with him will be Nasa astronaut Tim Kopra and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko.

Earlier this year, Major Peake explained how making sure the WC system remains intact will take up a large chunk of the mission.

There are currently two toilets aboard the station - in both the Russian and American segments - but both are nearly 15 years old and have a tendency to break.

Major Peake discussed the problem as he was questioned by children from a London primary school in a live link to Nasa's Johnson Space Centre in Houston, Texas.

HOW TO USE THE TOILET IN SPACE On Earth, we are used to toilet seats around 12 to 28 inches (30 to 45cm) in diameter, but in space astronauts must contend with an opening that's about four inches (ten centimetres) wide. They use restraints to hold themselves to the seat, which ensures that no waste can escape while they sit down, and to train astronauts to do this, Nasa has a toilet with a camera inside so they can practice positioning themselves correctly when they sit down. The toilet itself works like a vacuum cleaner, using differential air pressure to suck the solid waste away. The waste is not jettisoned into space, however, and is instead stored on the station to be disposed of on a capsule returning to Earth. The toilet itself (pictured) works like a vacuum cleaner, using differential air pressure to suck the solid waste away. The waste is not jettisoned into space, however, and is instead stored on the station to be disposed of on a capsule returning to Earth Urinating uses a different contraption. Personal urinal funnels are supplied to each astronaut, which attach to a hose adapter. When an astronaut uses the funnel, fans suck the urine out into a waste water tank. Toilets on the ISS can cost upwards of £11 million ($19 million), while the entire set-up costs about £150 million ($250 million) This is because the urine facilities are fairly complex; in 2008 astronauts began using a new system than can purify and distill urine into water. This can then be recycled and used for drinking and bathing. To separate contaminants in the urine from the water, the ISS has a spinning keg-sized distiller that creates artificial gravity while boiling the liquid. Eventually Nasa also hopes to generate electricity using the urine in a process known as forward osmosis. Advertisement

One of the children, named Eddie, asked the question children want the answer to more than any other when it comes to human space flight - 'how do you go to the toilet?'

Major Peake, from Salisbury, Wiltshire replied: 'The most training we have is not how to use it but how to fix it. It's been up there for 15 years now.

'There's one in the Russian segment and one in the American segment. Thankfully they're pretty identical so they share common parts, but they do break quite a lot.

'So it might not seem like a very glamorous task for an astronaut but we do spend an awful lot of time fixing the loo. In terms of using it, it's really very straightforward.

Mr Peake (pictured), a former Army helicopter pilot, was selected for astronaut training by Esa in 2009. Over the past six years, the 43-year-old has lived in an underground cave, spent 12 days on the bottom of the sea, and has taken lessons in science and Russian. He is pictured in a 'zero-gravity' simulator

Major Peake, pictured in 2012, uses a device that simulates the motion experienced in zero gravity

'It just uses air suction and a big fan to keep everything going in the right direction.'

He added: 'I'm sure there's going to be a bit of a rush to the loo after six hours in the Soyuz spacecraft when we dock and get on board the space station.'

MAJOR PEAKE: JOURNEY TO SPACE 2008 Applied to the European Space Agency. Start of rigorous, year-long screening process 2009 Selected to join the European Space Agency Astronaut Corps Appointed an ambassador for UK science and space-based careers 2010 Completed 14 months of astronaut basic training 2011 Tim and five other astronauts joined a team living in caves in Sardinia for a week. 2012 Spent 12 days living in a permanent underwater base in Florida Completed training and certification for space walks 2013 Tim assigned a six-month mission to the International Space Station 2015 Tim will embark on the Principia mission, a long-duration flight to the ISS Advertisement

The children who spoke to him from Queen's Park Primary School in Westminster, London, belong to one of a number of school groups engaged in activities related to the mission.

The aim is to promote an interest in science and technology with experiments involving food, coding, plant growth and fitness.

Over the past six years, the 43-year-old has lived in an underground cave, spent 12 days on the bottom of the sea, and taken lessons in science and Russian.

It is not the first time a Briton has flown in space, but other British astronauts have had private funding - such as Helen Sharman, the first Briton in space in 1991 – or taken dual citizenship

Major Peake was selected from more than 8,000 applicants and, speaking to MailOnline from the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany, he admitted that while he had a lifelong interest in space, there had been no clear way into the career.

'As a child growing up I followed the space programme and it was very inspiring but at that point there were no British astronauts so it was not as if there was a set path to follow,' he explained.

After sending in his application, he was invited to take part in the ESA's extensive screening process, starting with a day of tests in front of computer screens.

'It was test , after test , after test , with very few breaks. We did concentration tests and non-trainable tests for one day in Hamburg,' he continued

'Then they tested soft skills communication skills like leadership and followership.'

His forthcoming mission has been called Principia, after Sir Isaac Newton's historic text Naturalis Principia Mathematica, describing the principal laws of motion and gravity.