The Canadian Space Agency has announced 15 grants totalling $5.5 million to date for the Flights and Fieldwork for the Advancement of Science and Technology (FAST) 2023 announcement of opportunity (AO).
FAST grants were available in two categories:
- Category A: Maximum grant of $500,000 for a maximum duration of three years for an end-to-end space-like mission project that includes the development or improvement of a technology, use of the technology during a flight, a field deployment or a research site deployment, and data collection and analysis; the maximum amount available per year is $200,000;
- Category B: Maximum grant of $300,000 for a maximum duration of three years, for a space-related research project; the maximum amount available per year is $150,000.
Grants awarded for Category A – End-to-end space-like mission projects
McGill University, Quebec
- Dr. Lyle Whyte ($499,977)
Development and application of an integrated surface melt probe in Icy Moon and Mars analogue sites for biosignature detection and Mars sample return planetary protection risk assessment.
- Dr. Jeff Bergthorson ($399,948)
Space-manufactured fuels for propulsion and energy storage.
University of Calgary, Alberta
- Dr. Johnathan Burchill ($500,000)
Innovative Measurements of Auroral Geophysics for Education and Research (IMAGER).
University of Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan
- Dr. Adam Bourassa ($500,000)
SHOW Balloon payload development for HAWC mission validation.
University of Toronto, Ontario
- Dr. Axel Guenther ($500,000)
In Situ Tissue Engineering (INSITE).
- Dr. Kaley Walker ($450,000)
CALASET-NXT: Evolving a payload for atmospheric laser absorption spectroscopy.
York University, Ontario
- Dr. Regina Lee ($449,350)
Daytime Star Tracker Design and Demonstration for Space Situational Awareness (SSA).
Grants awarded for Category B – Space-related research projects
École Polytechnique de Montréal, Quebec
- Dr. Elham Baladi ($299,970)
Integrated Communication and Space Debris Detection via Intelligent Surfaces.
- Dr. Jean-François Masson ($300,000)
Portable instrumentation for tracking inflammatory biomarkers in remote regions and in space.
University of Alberta, Alberta
- Dr. David Keith Milling ($150,000)
Payload for Energetic Particle Precipitation Education and Research eXperiment (PEPPER‐X).
University of British Columbia, British Columbia
- Dr. Jess McIver ($296,978)
Enabling multi-messenger astronomy with the LISA mission.
University of Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan
- Dr. Li Chen($300,000)
Development of Radiation-Hardened 32 bit RSIC-V Microcontroller.
Western University, Ontario
- Dr. Livio Tornabene ($299,541)
Analogue Field Testing, Training and Operational Readiness for the 2028 ExoMars Rover Mission: Co-analysis of PanCam and Enfys data to determine the origin of clays on Mars.
York University, Ontario
- Dr. Aleksander Czekanski ($300,000)
Simulating Microgravity in Understanding Bioprinting Optimized Process for Astronauts’ Wound and Severe Burn Patients Healing: Bridging the Gap for Training the Next Generation of Engineers. - Dr. Marina Freire-Gormaly ($300,000)
Nanobubble Technology for gas-liquid enhancement in food growth applications for spaceflight environments.