Grants and Contributions

A partnership between SuperNOVA at Dalhousie University (SuperNOVA), GALAXIA Mission Systems (GALAXIA), and Dalhousie Space Systems Lab (DSS), ATLAS (ATLantic Academy of Space), is an educational initiative that will introduce Atlantic Canadian high school students to space exploration, artificial intelligence (AI), engineering and technology through an intensive two-week CubeSat satellite design program (Summer Academy) at Dalhousie University. ATLAS will work towards gender parity and a target of 50% Indigenous and Black student enrollment, collaborating with youth-serving organizations to promote the opportunity.

The main objective of the project is to “bring” the night sky to local schools and community events. To enhance this experience, the project will create customized programming with the following awareness objectives: 1) Educate youth and promote Canadian space missions, space science and technologies, with a particular emphasis on CSA Moon exploration initiatives, the Lunar Gateway Station, the Artemis II mission, and the discoveries arising from the JWST and 2) Introduce youth to Indigenous Moon and star-lore teachings, pairing First Nations night sky knowledge with that of western astronomy.

Wobbly legs, dizzy spells and even fainting experienced by astronauts on return to Earth are serious health and safety concerns. While a major part of this is the loss of the effect of gravity on the body, another may be related to being isolated in a small group. This results in stress which could result in reduced quality of life and health. This is not unlike what many of us experienced during the pandemic lock down. The HERA facility allows us to study how posture and cardiovascular function are affected in isolation to better protect astronauts and isolated older persons.

The Q-AISES Rocket Team is an engineering design team operating out of Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. It is comprised of Indigenous student members of the Queen's chapter of AISES (American Indian Science and Engineering Society), which is a broader international organization that encourages and supports Indigenous engagement with study and careers in STEM fields. The Q-AISES team is the only Canadian team to be invited to participate in an annual high-powered rocket engineering design competition called First Nations Launch, which is run by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the United States as part of their Artemis Student Challenges program.

Ground measurements in Canada in support of space weather research.

Our food technology is centered around a yeast strain that is specially adapted to the space environment (AstroYeast). The yeast acts as a chassis to produce the nutrients crew members will need for their long voyage to our celestial neighbours, combined with flavour molecules that enhance the dining experience. The production of these nutrients and flavour molecules is performed in an automated and optimized bioreactor system. The end product is a delicious and nutritious yeast spread which can be safely consumed.

The “Canada GOOSE” is a controlled environment plant growth chamber designed to push the boundaries of high-density crop production yielding a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, and mushrooms complete with power and water supply. Exploiting uniquely Canadian controlled environment technology and expertise, this design innovates ways to achieve homogeneous conditions within a high-density production system. While meant to address the supply of fresh nutritious food for astronauts, the chamber could be installed in remote areas or harsh environments to improve food security around the world.

CANGrow is a novel modular polyculture indoor food production system that will enable long term space exploration. The CANGrow system incorporates novel technologies in order to offer the widest possible variety of foods with optimal yield. It grows a diversity of biologically efficient food products: strawberries, cherry tomatoes, two root vegetables, microgreens, four unique culinary herbs, mini-head lettuce, an algae superfood, and a mycelial meat substitute - “space bacon”. The technology has the potential to provide over 500kg of nutrient dense food annually.

The Cricket Rearing, Collection, and Transformation System (CRCTS) is designed to be a protein source for astronauts and humans in remote environments on Earth by growing and harvesting protein-rich crickets in a first-of-its-kind controlled environment. Starting with nothing but a few hundred eggs, the CRCTS can quickly support the growth of tens of thousands of crickets every month. The CRCTS uses advanced filters, UVC lamps, and vacuum systems to completely isolate the crickets from the human living environment, ensuring minimal contamination risk throughout all system operations.

Space Environment Canada is a consortium bringing together the CARISMA, TREx-ASI, AUTUMN, AUGO, SWAN, AuroraX, AuroraMAX, and Aurora Watch projects. This is a ground-based network of magnetometers, multi-spectral ASIs, single beam hyper-spectral riometers, additional specialized optical, radio, and magnetic instruments, and very mature data dissemination systems. The network spans most of Canada, and captures multi-scale processes and structures with scale sizes ranging from kilometers to thousands of kilometers. This project is a collaboration between the University of Calgary, the University of Alberta and Athabasca University.