Opinion

In 2019 the Canadian space community was energized by the Government of Canada’s successful launch of the RADARSAT Constellation Mission; three satellites designed that among other things are able to help Canadians study dramatically changing climate – and such events as the breakup of massive ice sheets that have been present for thousands of years.

Anyone who has been working in or following the space business over the last decade is familiar with the dichotomy that has grown up between “new” or entrepreneurial space ventures and traditional space programs. Often these sectors seem to be a model of the classic two solitudes, existing side by side but embodying two different world views and without a lot of (constructive) interaction. But …

Barely a month has passed since my first column on SpaceQ and already my best laid plans to use this column to push for a place for space in governmental budgets has come undone. This page is for subscribers only. Already a subscriber? Log in. Fact-driven space news, columns, business, policy, technology and more. Support independent journalism. SUBSCRIBE TODAY

This past weekend Canadian federal parties worked out an agreement for in-person and virtual meetings of the House of Commons.

On the eve of 2020, followers of the Canadian space industry were greeted with exciting news. Northern Private Capital, a Toronto-based investment consortium, had reclaimed a national asset by buying MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates (MDA) for an eye-popping $1 billion.

As some of you may know I recently started a podcast called Terranauts. I like to say that the purpose of the podcast is tell stories about people who work in space without ever leaving the ground. Hence the name.

It was recently confirmed that Canada’s first space-based satellite, MOST (for Microvariability and Oscillations of Stars), had stopped functioning. Dubbed the “humble” satellite because of its meager budget of $10M but similar mission to the Hubble telescope, MOST’s success was one of Canadian ingenuity.

India used its advanced anti-ballistic missile defence capability to conduct a kinetic anti-satellite test (“Mission Shakti”) against one of its own satellites on March 27.

The federal government finally announced its new space strategy. It has been a long-time coming (16 years, to be exact) and has generated mixed reactions.

The following story was written by Alexandra Evershed of Prospectus Associates. It is the reflections of Dr. LeRoy Nelm who was an important contributor to Canada’s early space program.