You have probably heard about Jeremy Hansen and Jenni Gibbons, the Canadian astronauts who are part of the Artemis II mission. Hansen will be on board as a Mission Specialist, and Gibbons is assigned as his backup. Unless Gibbons has to board the spacecraft, she will serve as capsule communicator for the mission—the primary link between mission control and the craft. Canadians have a lot to be proud of, as the second country to have astronauts in deep space. This mission will take the crew farther from Earth than anyone has ever been.
Public service workers and space exploration
Behind all the excitement about our astronauts making history are many public service workers. You probably haven’t heard much about all the staff of the Canadian Space Agency who work at the John H. Chapman Space Centre in St.-Hubert, Quebec. About 150 UCTE members work there as the backbone of the centre’s administrative functions. They are among the unsung “CSA family” that Jeremy Hansen thanks in the video below.
As well as the two astronauts, the Canadian Space Agency is providing technology and expertise to the project. The Canadian Space Agency’s role in Moon exploration goes far beyond this mission—including a Lunar Rover, CANADARM3 development, testing technology, supporting space science, and roles in future lunar missions.
Photo © Canadian Space Agency
