Grants and Contributions

Future exploration of our solar system will require continuous innovation and improvements to in-space propulsion.

Located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Aethera Technologies is developing critical technology for advanced in-space electric propulsion. Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR®) technology has extremely low fuel consumption and much higher performance when compared with conventional chemical propulsion or other electric rockets. The technology offers economic and operational advantages in space commerce, including satellite deployment, re-boost services, refurbishment, and end-of-life disposal. This technology advances humanity's evolution beyond low Earth orbit (LEO) and significantly contributes to the world's technology base for the exploration of space. Leveraging Aethera's expertise in the field of High-Power Radio Frequency systems, the project focuses on the development of Radio Frequency Power Processing Units with extremely high electrical energy conversion efficiencies and mass density.

The use of electric orbit raising, instead of chemical propulsion, after launch and separation of the satellite from the launcher to reach the geostationary orbit allows reducing propellant mass, and therefore increasing the maximum allowable spacecraft dry mass. However, today's existing electric propulsion pointing systems are limited in their degrees of freedom and are available at a high price.

MDA will develop the Three Axis Deployable Stationary Plasma Thruster Module (TSM), allowing an intensive and efficient use of electric propulsion on telecommunications satellites, both for the orbit-raising phase and the station-keeping manoeuvres. The TSM is a very versatile system, able to re-point thrusters continuously during multiple years of in-orbit life, and benefits from past developments of actuators qualified for constellation missions' antennas.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is the intersection of sensors, connectivity, and powerful data analytics used to collect and exchange data for various purposes, including business decisions. For industries with global operations – such as shipping and logistics, natural resource exploration, or transportation – the high cost of satellite connectivity prevents IoT solutions from being deployed and providing economic and business improvements.

Kepler will develop low-cost antenna technology – a reconfigurable reflect array – for satellite communications. This technology will enable mobile communications with a low-cost satellite network, and facilitate connectivity for millions of IoT devices.

Mass and size have always been design drivers for space applications. Launch costs and a continuous drive towards increased on-orbit capability mean that a significant premium is placed on any reduction in mass and/or volume of a product.

COM DEV will develop a new output network targeting a 30% reduction in mass and size. The output network is a collection of hardware utilized for recombining high-power amplified signals into a uniform beam for broadcast back to Earth. This proposed miniaturized output network will introduce novel designs, new materials and processes, and streamlined manufacturability for schedule and cost.

Directing intelligent efforts in the fight against climate change demands more and more accurate climate critical data.

Calibration blackbodies in infrared Earth observation instruments help ensure the accuracy of radiometric measurements, which can be used to reveal changes over time in our atmosphere and landscape. This project will evaluate and validate two new technologies that could greatly improve the radiometric accuracy of calibration blackbodies.

Inertial navigation is a technology that allows vehicles to determine how their position has changed over time, without needing to use outside resources (such as GPS). Currently, spacecraft operators must rely on external references such as radio tracking for navigation, but a method of autonomous navigation is highly desired for situations where ground-based communications are not possible.

However, all current inertial navigation instruments suffer from an unavoidable drifting bias, causing a position error in the navigation solution which grows rapidly with time. The inaccuracy grows after a few hours to a level that is unacceptable for most space flight applications, especially for long-term exploration-class missions to other planets. Recently, Gedex developed a method using a pair of gimballed accelerometers that completely eliminates the drifting bias, slowing down the degradation of the navigation solution to the point where it can be useable for weeks or months. This revolutionary capability has immediate applications for asteroid exploration and long-duration, low-thrust space flight to other planets, and eventual applications for planetary rover exploration.

Companies looking to reduce their carbon footprint often struggle to accurately measure their emissions. GHGSat developed a technology that measures gas emissions from industrial facilities from space. In 2016, GHGSat successfully launched its first nanosatellite and is now looking to expand and launch two more nanosatellites.

GHGSat will partner with Sinclair Interplanetary and Xiphos System Corporation to demonstrate the Darkstar-Q8 optical downlink system, which is expected to improve the downlink capacity of GHGSat's satellites, thus enabling monitoring capacity up to 10 times more than its current system, providing more greenhouse gas measurement opportunities for industrial facilities around the world, and reducing GHGSat's cost per measurement.

The Centre for Surgical Invention and Innovation developed an Image-Guided Automated Robot (IGAR) designed to carry out automated, preplanned, imaging-technology-guided surgical procedures. IGAR's medical procedures have proven to be equivalent in precision, comfort, and time with less pain and better cosmetic outcomes than the standard manual procedure.

This feasibility study proposes to merge IGAR with the IBM Watson Cognitive Computing System, allowing Watson to plan and control the execution of IGAR's surgical tasks. This will be the first demonstration of a fully autonomous medical robotic system in the world. This technology would be vitally important to the future of human space exploration and colonization, as well as improve quality and access to health care on Earth.

Light detection and ranging (lidar) sensors are essential tools used for a variety of tasks such as terrestrial topographic mapping, navigation and docking in space, and landings on planets or asteroids.

Teledyne has proposed to develop a compact array sensor. The improved lidar system will reduce the size and weight of the equipment, while increasing the range, coverage rate, and resolution of mapping technologies.

A light detection and ranging (lidar) 3D imaging sensor uses lasers to produce representations of an environment or object. Lidar is crucial for robotic navigation technologies. A small, low-cost, lighting-immune 3D sensor is highly desired for potential future planetary rover missions.

Neptec is proposing the development of a next-generation miniaturized lidar platform which addresses customer needs and future trends in both terrestrial and space markets. This will be accomplished through the manufacture and testing of two mini lidar prototypes, one focusing on performance and readiness for flight, and the other prioritizing miniaturization over performance. These projects will leverage Neptec's experience and expertise in developing lidar systems for space, using the successful TriDAR as a foundation for the proposed architecture.