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A human mission on Mars has long been the only domain of science fiction, but plans to place humans on the surface of the red planet are really beginning to materialize. However, Tim Peak, the British astronaut who visited the International Space Station (ISS) in 2015, believes that the 2030 calendar of NASA's US space agency for Mars is too ambitious. Major Peake, 47, said, "In the next 50 years, we will celebrate human beings on Mars. I'm pretty sure of that.
"I would be careful to say that we will celebrate humans on Mars in the next 20 years.
"We need to have conversations about space – who owns it, who regulates it, how are we going to control the missions of the future.
"Businesses will have a huge role to play in the way we fulfill this mission."
Speaking at the British Space Conference in Newport, Major Peake said that it was unlikely that an extraterrestrial life would end up on the red planet, but that even a single cell would be discovered; would be "extremely important".
READ MORE: NASA thinks this amazing planet may have already hosted life
He added that signs of extraterrestrial life would change the game, raising questions about the implications for other solar systems.
Major Peake also highlighted the challenges facing the space industry in moving responsibly in space.
The astronaut of the European Space Agency explained: "Space debris has become uncontrollable. They are becoming under regulatory control as they try to force satellite launch companies to comply at the end of their life, or to protect them from the risk of space debris.
"But we can always do more – we have to clean up the problems of the past. But we are now aware of the problem. "
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He stressed the need to clean outer space before a "catastrophic impact" takes on incredibly valuable assets such as telecommunications, the International Space Station and weather systems.
This month, a European Space Agency satellite collided with Elon Musk's SpaceX Starlink constellation.
This pushed a satellite to perform the very first "collision avoidance maneuver".
Major Peake said, "As space becomes more valuable to us, economically, people are realizing the threat."
Issues such as space regulation and artificial intelligence management also need to be taken into account.
READ MORE: Hubble creates cosmic galaxy history book
Mayor Peake added, "It's about having the right conversations at the right time.
"We need to have discussions right now on artificial intelligence – how are we going to control that, how is it going to be managed?
"We need to have conversations about space – who owns it, who regulates it, how are we going to control the missions of the future.
"There are very important challenges in making sure we do things responsibly and sustainably."
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