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Canadian Space Agency
Canadian Space Agency logo
Established	1989
President	Laurier J. Boisvert
Budget	CAD $373.5 million (2007)
Website	www.space.gc.ca

The 'Canadian Space Agency' ('CSA' or, in French, l''Agence spatiale canadienne', 'ASC') is the Canadian government space agency responsible for Canada's space program. It was established in March 1989 by the Canadian Space Agency Act and sanctioned in December 1990. The Chief Executive Officer of the agency is the President who reports to the Minister of Industry.
The headquarters of the CSA is located at John H. Chapman Space Centre in Saint-Hubert, Quebec. The agency also has offices in Ottawa, Ontario at the David Florida Laboratory (which is mainly an engineering installation) and small liaison offices in Washington, D.C., Paris, France, Cape Canaveral, Florida, and Houston, Texas.
The agency is a relatively modest federal establishment, with only 575 employees and a rotating student population of about 100 interns or summer workers. Most of the staff is at the Chapman Centre.

Contents

History

Mission and mandate

Cooperation with other national agencies

Canadian Space Program

Canadians in Space

Space Agency Locations

External links

History

With the launch of Alouette 1 in 1962 Canada became the third country to put a man-made satellite into space. The mission was a big success; although it was only expected to last for one year, it lasted for ten. This prompted further study of the ionosphere with the international ISIS program, which in 1993 was designated an International Milestone of Electrical Engineering by IEEE. It should be noted, however, that Canada has never had any domestic launch capabilities of its own. While Alouette 1 was entirely built and funded by Canada, it was launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) from the Pacific Missile Range from Vandenberg AFB,California at 06:05 UTC on September 29, 1962.
Another Canadian first was the launch of Anik A-1 in 1972, making Canada the first country in the world to have its own domestic geostationary communication satellite network.

Mission and mandate

The 'Canadian Space Agency Act' is the Act of the Parliament of Canada which established the Canadian Space Agency. The Act received royal assent on May 10, 1990 and came into force on December 14, 1990. See the full text. The legislated mandate of the CSA is:
:"To promote the peaceful use and development of space, to advance the knowledge of space through science and to ensure that space science and technology provide social and economic benefits for Canadians".
The Canadian Space Agency's mission statement says that the agency is committed to leading the development and application of space knowledge for the benefit of Canadians and humanity.
To achieve this, the CSA attempts to promote an environment where all levels of the organization:

★ pursue excellence collectively

★ advocate a client-oriented attitude

★ support employee-oriented practices and open communications

★ commit themselves to both empowerment and accountability and

★ pledge to cooperate and work with partners to mutual benefit

Cooperation with other national agencies

The CSA has several formal and informal partnerships and collaborative programs or agreements with space agencies in other countries, such as NASA, ESA and JAXA, and perhaps soon the CNSA.
Since January 1, 1979 Canada has had the special status of a cooperating state with the ESA, paying for the privilege and also investing in working time and providing scientific instruments which are placed on European probes. On June 21, 2000 the accord was renewed for a fourth period, this time for 10 years. By virtue of this accord Canada takes part in ESA deliberative bodies and decision-making and in ESA's programmes and activities. Canadian firms can bid for and receive contracts to work on programmes. The accord has a provision specifically ensuring a fair industrial return to Canada.
The CSA visited the China National Space Administration in October 2005 and planned to reach a deal soon to put Canadian scientific instruments in two Chinese satellites. There was also speculation about China in the future perhaps wanting the Canadarm2 technology for its planned space station, but as of 22 October 2005, the CNSA has not raised the possibility.

Canadian Space Program

The Canadian Space Program is also administered by the Canadian Space Agency. Canada has contributed technology, expertise and personnel to the world space effort, especially in collaboration with NASA and the ESA.
In addition to its astronauts, some of the most notable Canadian technological contributions to space exploration are the Canadarm on the Space Shuttle as well as the Canadarm2 and the rest of the Mobile Servicing System on the International Space Station. The Canadarm and Canadarm2 are assisted by the Advanced Space Vision System which allows more efficient use of the robotic arms. Another example is the Orbiter Boom Sensor System, which is an extension of the Canadarm used to inspect the Space Shuttle's thermal Protection System for damage while in orbit.

Canadians in Space

Eight Canadians have participated on 12 NASA manned missions to date with a 13th scheduled in 2007:

Name	Shuttle	Mission	Launch date	Notes
Marc Garneau	''Challenger''	STS-41-G	October 5, 1984	''First Canadian in space''
Roberta Bondar	''Discovery''	STS-42	January 22, 1992	''First Canadian woman in space''
Steven MacLean	''Columbia''	STS-52	October 22, 1992
Chris Hadfield	''Atlantis''	STS-74	November 12, 1995	Only Canadian to visit Mir
Marc Garneau	''Endeavour''	STS-77	May 19, 1996
Robert Thirsk	''Columbia''	STS-78	June 20, 1996
Bjarni Tryggvason	''Discovery''	STS-85	August 7, 1997
Dafydd Williams	''Columbia''	STS-90	April 17, 1998
Julie Payette	''Discovery''	STS-96	May 27, 1999	First Canadian to visit the ISS
Marc Garneau	''Endeavour''	STS-97	November 30, 2000	ISS mission
Chris Hadfield	''Endeavour''	STS-100	April 19, 2001	First spacewalk by a Canadian
Steven MacLean	''Atlantis ''	STS-115	September 9, 2006	Second spacewalk by a Canadian
Dafydd Williams	''Endeavour ''	STS-118	August 27, 2007	Third spacewalk by a Canadian

Note: Michael McKay resigned due to medical reasons and Kenneth Money resigned in 1992, eight years after his selection; neither flew in space.
==Canadian satellites==

Name	Launched	Retired	Purpose
Alouette 1	September 29, 1962	1972	Explore the ionosphere
Alouette 2	November 29, 1965	August 1, 1975	Explore the ionosphere
ISIS-I	January 30, 1969	1990	Explore the ionosphere
ISIS-II	April 1, 1971		Explore the ionosphere
Hermes	January 17, 1976	November, 1979	Experimental communications satellite
RADARSAT-1	November 4, 1995	Still in use	Commercial Earth observation satellite
MOST	June 30, 2003	Still in use	Space telescope
SCISAT-1	August 12, 2003	Still in use	Observe the Earth's atmosphere
RADARSAT-2	Scheduled for 2007		Commercial Earth observation satellite
CASSIOPE	Scheduled for 2007		CAScade, Smallsat and IOnospheric Polar Explorer

Additionally, there are some commercial satellites launched by the telecommunications company Telesat Canada. These are the 13 Anik satellites (3 of which are still in use), the 3 Nimiq satellites (all currently used by Bell ExpressVu), and a satellite called M-Sat 1 launched April 20, 1996, at 22h36 UTC.

Space Agency Locations

★ John H. Chapman Space Centre

★ David Florida Laboratory

★ Fort Churchill

External links

★ Official website

★ Canada in Space

★ Text of the Canadian Space Agency Act