Canadian students to conduct real space mission operations from their school

MP Ruby Sahota and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen meet the next generation of space innovators

BOLTON, ON, April 7, 2016 /CNW/ - A group of Bolton elementary-school students taking part in an international space mission met with Ruby Sahota, Member of Parliament for Brampton North, and astronaut Jeremy Hansen to debrief them on mission operations.

For nine months, 20 grade 4 to 6 students from St. John Paul II Elementary will track STMSat-1 from a remote mission operations centre (RMOC) they built in their school with help from Ontario-based Canadensys Aerospace.

The satellite, scheduled to launch from the International Space Station on May 11, will take pictures of Earth every 30 seconds and transmit them back to a network of RMOCs in schools across the United States. St. John Paul II students are the only international partners on the project.

Quotes

"This hands-on project uses space to engage schoolchildren in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, allowing them to have fun while building the skills to be Canada's next generation of innovators. I am delighted to see a Canadian company create an exciting opportunity for local students to get interested in science and technology."

The Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and Minister Responsible for the Canadian Space Agency

"This mission is an amazing opportunity to encourage bright young minds to discover and better understand the wonders of space. I am very impressed by this project, and I commend both Canadensys and the students of St. John Paul II for their hard work and involvement on this project. I hope that the next nine months are a great success."

Ruby Sahota, Member of Parliament for Brampton North

"We are thrilled to be partnered with St. John Paul II School, and our American colleagues at St. Thomas More School and NASA, to provide Canadian elementary school students with the first-hand experience of a real space mission."

Christian Sallaberger, President of Canadensys Aerospace

"All of our students, from Kindergarten through Grade 8, will have a chance to participate in an actual space mission in various ways. This is a truly unique experience that has fired the imaginations of teachers and students alike."

George Consitt, Principal of St. John Paul II Elementary School

Quick facts

• STMSat-1 was built by American students from St. Thomas More Cathedral School in Arlington, Virginia, and is the first CubeSat designed, built and launched to space by elementary schoolchildren.
• STMSat-1 will allow students to gain unprecedented insight into the technology, the methods, and the hardware involved in building and operating nanosatellites.
• STMSat-1 is expected to be operational within two weeks after launch and to remain in orbit for at least nine months.
• Canadensys Aerospace is providing hardware for the RMOC and support to the students and teachers as technical advisor for the project in Canada.

Links

For more information about STMSat-1

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SOURCE Canadian Space Agency

Canadian Space Agency, Media Relations Office, Telephone: [phone], Email: [email protected], Website: http://asc-csa.gc.ca, Twitter: @csa_asc