Space station astronauts are first to view new Martian movie

It can't yet be seen on Earth ... but astronauts on the International Space Station have had a preview of Matt Damon's new film The Martian, in which the actor plays an astronaut who finds himself stranded on Mars.

Astronaut Scott Kelly, who is on a year-long mission on the space station, tweeted an image of what film night on board the station looks like.

The film, based on the novel by Andy Weir, is not due to land in cinemas down on Earth until October, but the astronauts had a sneak preview of Hollywood's latest space-based disaster film.

Not that it probably concerned them - earlier in the year they reportedly watched Gravity, in which astronauts played by Sandra Bullock and George Clooney are left stranded in space after their shuttle is destroyed.

Meanwhile, real-life astronaut Kelly is not due to return to Earth until March next year.