Sharman, who became the first British person to visit space in 1991, said: “It’s an extraordinary collection. We’ve got bits of Apollo 11, bits from the Russian space programme – it’s just an amazing collection of artefacts from space flight history.
“It tells its own story of space history, but also of the people that went and the items that were important to them.
“For it to be on show now in this beautiful way, as part of Grizedale Observatory, what a coup for Cumbria.”
The museum contains a variety of pieces ranging from autographed photos and signatures of prominent people in space flight to parts of actual space craft.
Dulcamara said he first started collecting the artefacts after he attended a shuttle launch in 1996 and kept the ticket.
“That’s what started my 30 year collection off,” he said. “There’s thousands of pieces on display, I hope people will come and have a look.”
