Tim Peake could end his retirement after just 9 MONTHS to lead the UK's first team into space: British spaceman is tipped to be among crew of four - alongside the world's first parastronaut and two female astronauts

Just 9 months aft announcing his retirement, Major Tim Peake whitethorn beryllium astir to make a spectacular return to space.

According to reports, the legendary British astronaut will lead a four-person UK squad to nan International Space Station (ISS) sometime successful nan adjacent fewer years. 

Major Peake – known arsenic nan 'first British spaceman' – is group to beryllium joined by the world's first parastronaut, primitively from Surrey, and 2 female astronauts. 

The quartet will walk up to 2 weeks connected nan orbiting laboratory to transportation retired technological investigation and show caller technologies earlier flying home. 

Peake, 51, famously spent six months connected nan ISS betwixt 2015 and 2016, but his younger crewmates will beryllium making their first trips into orbit. 

The UK Space Agency has collaborated pinch US patient Axiom Space for nan mission, though they will officially beryllium represented by nan European Space Agency (ESA). 

The agency confirmed to MailOnline that nan ngo is successful nan readying stages, but added that nary day has been chosen and nan unit has not been selected yet. 

It's apt nan ngo will require a seasoned astronaut to enactment arsenic commandant - pinch Major Peake nan astir evident contender.

Peake, who has focused connected ambassadorial activity of late, acknowledged nan ngo connected X (Twitter) arsenic 'exciting', but did not reside nan reports that he would beryllium connected board. 

Meanwhile, nan astir apt contenders for nan 3 different spots are nan Brits recently selected for nan ESA's astronaut programme successful 2023.

They are John McFall, 42, a surgical trainee and Paralympic medallist; Meganne Christian, 35, a materials intelligence primitively from Kent; and Rosemary Coogan, 32, an astrophysicist from Northern Ireland. 

McFall, who was filmed undergoing weightlessness training earlier successful nan year, had his correct limb amputated pursuing a motorcycle mishap successful Thailand in 2000.  

He was fitted pinch a prosthesis and is now moving pinch nan ESA to analyse really specified a disablement could impact a stint successful space.      

Rosemary Coogan, 32, is from Belfast but went to schoolhouse successful Brighton and has 2 masters degrees successful physics from nan University of Durham. 

From a young age, she spent respective weeks a twelvemonth distant from location onboard subject training vessels and onshore bases arsenic a Cadet Petty Officer pinch nan Sea Cadets from 2002 to 2009. 

Meanwhile, Meganne Christian, 35, was calved successful Kent but moved to Australia astatine a young property and studied astatine the University of New South Wales. 

The materials intelligence has worked astatine nan National Research Council of Italy successful Bologna and arsenic a interrogator astatine Concordia Station successful Antarctica, 1 of nan astir distant places connected Earth. 

There's nary actual day for nan mission, and considering specified projects usually return betwixt 18-24 months to travel to fruition from nan readying stages, it whitethorn not hap until 2025.

By this time, Major Peake will beryllium 53 and would person to beryllium successful bully beingness style to extremity his spot being taken. 

Major Peake has already hinted astatine a return; erstwhile asked by James O’Brien during a recent podcast if he'd ever spell backmost to abstraction he replied 'never opportunity never'. 

Peake said: 'If you'd asked maine that a twelvemonth ago, I'd person said location possibly weren't a immense magnitude of opportunities.

'Actually, correct now, I deliberation there's much opportunity than I've moreover realized. There's a batch happening successful nan commercialized abstraction sector.

'It's really a "never opportunity never" – location are plentifulness of opportunities.'

Tim Peake, primitively from Chichester successful Sussex, was selected arsenic an ESA astronaut backmost successful 2009 and spent six months connected nan ISS from December 2015. 

When he blasted disconnected to nan ISS, he became nan first officially British spaceman, although he was not nan first Briton successful space. 

It was backmost successful 1991 erstwhile Sheffield-born chemist Helen Sharman not only became nan first British spacewoman, but nan first British personification successful space. 

Before both Sharman and Peake had been into space, different UK-born men had done truthful done NASA's abstraction programme, acknowledgment to acquiring US citizenship.

But Sharman and Peake are considered nan first 'official' British group successful abstraction arsenic they were some representing their state of birth. 

Major Peake besides became the first astronaut funded by nan British government. 

During his clip connected nan ISS, he ran nan London marathon and became nan first personification to complete a spacewalk while sporting a Union emblem connected his shoulder.