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23 May 2003

Apogee

http://www.space.gc.ca

CSA's Electronic Newsletter             May 2003

Part 1 of 4

Contents

An Interview with Marc Garneau: The Canadian Space Agency and the
Environment

Canada's SCISAT Mission

The Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator or Dextre for short

A Canadian Space Program Success Story: That Magic Touch

Events of Interest in May-December 2003



An Interview with Marc Garneau: The Canadian Space Agency and the
Environment

Marc Garneau on the Canadian Space Agency and the environment: Marc
Garneau describes the Canadian Space Agency's initiatives concerning
the environment during a recent interview with Apogee. 

Interviewer: What are the Canadian Space Agency's contributions to
the environment? 

Marc Garneau: The environment is very important for the Canadian
Space Agency. In fact, we have identified Earth and Environment as
our highest priority service line. Obviously, the environment is
changing: there are global pressures that are affecting the
environment not just in Canada but on a global scale. Space of course
allows us to put instruments up there in remote sensing platforms to
observe the environment. That is a very high priority for the
Canadian Space Agency, not only on a national level but in
cooperation with our international partners. 
 
I: What is the Canadian Space Agency's strategy concerning the
environment?

MC: We have adopted a two-pronged approach to studying the
environment. First of all, we work with our international partners
because very often we have the opportunity to put an instrument
onboard their satellites and we have done this on a number of
occasions in the past. MOPITT-- a Canadian instrument from the
University of Toronto--is on a NASA satellite called Terra. 

We have developed a SMALLSAT program here in Canada and a MICROSAT
program which is going to allow Canada to launch its own satellites
with Canadian instruments on board and this will give us a little
more autonomy. 

And, very shortly, we will be launching the SCISAT satellite--the
first all-Canadian satellite in 30 years--which will allow us to
study the ozone. 

I: What is the total planned spending for 2003-2004 to support
environmental protection? 

MC: If you look at the entire Earth and Environment service line at
the Canadian Space Agency, this year we will be spending around $110,
000,000 to study and protect the environment. This covers everything
from the Earth's surface right up to into space because there is a
component of our work that deals with atmospheric environment and
there is an area that deals with the part above it -- the space
environment. We have a number of programs that we are either going to
launch this year or that are already fairly mature: I mentioned
SCISAT whose function is to study the effect of certain chemicals
that we release in the atmosphere on the ozone layer. SCISAT is
scheduled to be launched this summer. We also have an instrument
aboard a Swedish satellite called OSIRIS which is already up there,
studying the vertical profile of the ozone. We are also participating
in a program with the European Space Agency and with the Japanese
called SWIFT--an interferometer which will study the transport of the
winds in the stratosphere, a very important process for atmospheric
physics. Another program we hope to get underway fairly soon is EPOP,
which stands for Enhanced Polar Outflow Probe. EPOP will carry a
suite of instruments to study the interaction in the upper atmosphere
due to the solar wind. The solar wind impinges on our planet and
interacts with the magnetic field of the Earth. This makes particles
to move around quite energetically and causes a coupling of energy
between the lower and higher atmosphere. This is an area that Canada
has been studying for a very long time in ionospheric physics and in
which we want to continue maintaining an expertise. There are a
number of other projects. 

I: How does the Canadian Space Agency's Earth and Environment
activities contribute to environmental management? 

MC: Well, environmental management is a very broad topic. It deals
with managing our resources, and we do that with the help of a
satellite like RADARSAT. It also involves studying the environment. I
mentioned a number of projects and I could add some more: CLOUDSAT is
an example of a program where we are cooperating with the United
States and with NASA to try to better understand clouds because
clouds are very much affected by the environment but they, in turn,
also affect the environment and Canada is contributing some
instruments to this particular program. Another very interesting
program is the International Living with a Star--the star being the
Sun--and it is a fact of life here on Earth. There is also a very
extensive array of instruments that is installed throughout the
Western and Northern parts of Canada: magnatometers, optical sensors
as well as radars, that study the effect of the Sun on the Earth. So
these are other examples of how we are studying the environment from
the very surface of the environment to the reaches of outer space. 

I: What are the benefits of the Earth and Environment Initiative for
the Canadian Space Industry? 

MC: Canada's space strategy with respect to industry aims at
developing niches of expertise within this country that are good
enough that we can actually export the technology. Specifically
within the area of remote sensing Canada has begun to develop a niche
within the radar-based sensors for remote sensing and definitely we
intend to maintain that expertise not only in the sensors themselves
but in the processing of the raw data that is sent back down to the
Earth by these sensors. We have quite a capability that exists in
this country and it is one that has actually led to exports. Earth
and Environment is the second largest sector in terms of Canada's
export capability with respect to the revenues it generates within
industry so we want to continue to maintain that and we also want to
develop an expertise in the instruments that are built for doing
remote sensing. We want to build them in Canada. 



Canada's SCISAT Mission

As the scheduled launch of SCISAT (July 2003 - To be confirmed)
approaches, Apogee interviewed Canadian Space Agency scientists and
representatives of the Canadian space industry on their contribution
to the SCISAT program. 

 - Continued -

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