Grants and Contributions

This project matures a suite of new mission data tools that will improve the utility of data returned from the growing range of government and commercial missions beyond earth orbit, making it more useful, accessible and valuable for the space sector of tomorrow.

The project addresses key technical & programmatic research and development areas en route to technology readiness level (TRL) 6 while validating real-world utility for the early wave of lunar exploration in accordance with the Canadian Space Agency’s (CSA’s) Lunar Exploration Acceleration Program (LEAP) objectives.

Sedimentary rocks exposed at the Martian surface offer an information-rich record of the planet’s past environmental conditions and biological habitability. Curiosity’s expected exploration of unique sedimentological units in Mount Sharp offer exciting opportunities for exploring the interplay between climate, water, and biological habitability at the critical time in Mars’ past when water-rich conditions existed and hence could have originated life. This proposal seeks to leverage our team’s expertise in quantifying and modeling these geochemical and hydrological processes and Curiosity’s prowess as a roving field geologist and mobile laboratory to develop a framework for interpreting past Martian climate and habitability.

By observing cloud shapes and motions we will constrain different processes that contribute to the weather on Mars, many of which also operate on the Earth. By observing the motions and how the quantity of dust in the atmosphere varies with height and location within Gale, we will better understand the mixing of the atmosphere close to the surface driven by solar heating. Lastly, we may use this improved understanding of weather to explain spikes observed in the amount of methane and whether the source is small and local, or is carried into the crater from a larger, distant source.

The recent reduction in launch costs has opened up potential for cost-efficient, high-performance, rapidly-deployable low Earth orbit (LEO) constellations. StarSpec Technologies specializes in high-precision high-accuracy Attitude Determination and Control Systems which are critical to the advancement of scientific, commercial, and military applications in space. StarSpec is directly addressing burgeoning demands in this sector through its InspireSAT Constellations On-Demand Initiative. This technology and related industrial capabilities will enable rapidly-deployable, high-precision and high-accuracy 12U to SmallSat class constellations uniquely suitable for next-generation sustainable applications in high-resolution Earth-imaging/Synthetic Aperture RADAR (SAR), Space Situational Awareness (SSA)/ Space Domain Awareness (SDA), military surveillance, and research.
This project will enable rapid commercial access to LEO while fostering growth through training of a critical mass of highly qualified personnel (HQP), thereby increasing Canadian space technologies prevalence and market share. StarSpec has received significant interest in this technology from Universities to collaborate on their projects, and is continuing to gain solid traction from the commercial sector.

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.

Balloon-borne visible and near-UV telescopes can achieve a resolution over a wide field
much better than can be achieved on the ground, and comparable only with space telescopes. The resolution achievable with visible light astronomical telescopes from the ground is limited by random refraction of light by the turbulent atmosphere to ~0.5” in the best conditions. Conversely, stratospheric balloon-borne telescopes, operating above 99.5% of the Earth’s atmosphere, avoid atmospheric distortions present in ground-based telescopes. The capability of the instrument to be developed by this project will be unmatched in the blue and near-UV by any current or planned observatory.

This project will provide exceptional training for students in the development and operation of complex instruments in a space-like environment. The GigaBIT observatory will take images with detail comparable to NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, but with a much higher sensitivity. With the development of that unique capability, Canada has the opportunity to lead the next great sky survey, with a suite of unmatched abilities: an angular resolution better than the Euclid space telescope, with depths several magnitudes deeper than its deep survey, while operating in the near UV.

Applicants with a design for a remote healthcare technology concept were invited to apply to the Challenge. After competing in Stage 2 of the Challenge as a semi-finalist, the recipient was selected as a finalist for a $350,000 cash prize.