Canada Investing in its Lunar Future: Artemis 2, LEAP, Canadarm3

Jeremy Hansen is set to become the first citizen of Canada traveling to the Moon via Artemis 2 in September 2025. Along with 3 other Astronauts, Hansen will travel on a nominal 10-day lunar mission in the Orion spacecraft, swinging around the Moon on a free-return trajectory. The Canadian Space Agency is hosting a media day with Hansen on February 5 from its headquarters in Longueuil, Quebec. The meeting will also cover Canadarm3 (built by MDA) – which is the Canadian contribution to the Lunar Gateway and currently under development for a 2028 launch. In early 2019, the Government of Canada announced its partnership with the Artemis program and its plan to invest CA$2.05 billion over 24 years for the Canada space program – including $76.5 million for Lunar Gateway and $150 million for Lunar Exploration Accelerator Program (LEAP). Nine organizations have so far been awarded 12 contracts under the LEAP program including Mission Control Space Services, NGC Aerospace, and Canadensys Aerospace Corporation—the latter of which developed a 360-degree imaging system that is flying aboard the Intuitive Machines Nova-C lunar lander launching to the Moon NET February 14. The first Canada Moon rover is also being built by Canadensys for NET 2026 launch with support from 3 international partners (USA, UK, Norway), 7 Canadian industry partners including Leap Biosystems and Waves in Space, and 6 Canadian academic institutions including Simon Fraser University and Western University. (Image Credits: CSA-ASC, NASA)

MONDAY 

☆ Feb 5 — International Space Station, ~415-km LEO: Expedition 70 returns to seven-member crew after Axiom Mission 3 arrives back on Earth, working ~3,700 kg of cargo from NG-20, doing analysis of substance found on Treadmill 2.

☆ Feb 5 — Tiangong Space Station, ~390-km LEO: Shenzhou-17 three-member crew transferring 260 items of cargo from Tianzhou-7, including items for the celebration of Lunar New Year / Year of the Dragon.

o Feb 5 — Canadian Space Agency, Online / Longueuil, Quebec, Canada: Artemis 2 Media Day with Jeremy Hansen.

● Feb 5-6 — Avon Machining, Warner, Lockheed Martin, Atlas Space Operations, Air Force Research Laboratory, Detroit MI: North American Space Summit (NASS).

☾ = Moon activity

★ = Space and… ☆ = International space / astro events in Hawaii Standard Time unless noted. Add 10 hours to obtain UT (‘Universal Time’).

PACE Mission to Provide Valuable Biochemistry Data for Ocean Science

The US$805M Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) Earth observation satellite is to be launched to 676.5 km, 98° inclination SSO via SpaceX Falcon 9 from CCSFS in Florida Feb 6. The 1.5 x 1.5 x 3.2 m, 1694-kg craft will be carrying science instruments Ocean Color Instrument (OCI), Spectro-Polarimeter for Planetary Exploration (SPEXone), Hyper-Angular Rainbow Polarimeter #2 (HARP2): OCI will conduct hyperspectral observation of Earth top of atmosphere radiance from UV to near IR (342.5 – 887.5 nm) with 2.5 nm resolution and in shortwave infrared bands, while SPEXone, developed by Netherlands Institute for Space Research / Airbus and HARP2, developed by University of Maryland, Baltimore County Earth and Space Institute will measure clouds and aerosol particles such as volcanic ash and sea salt. Ocean color, carbon cycling and phytoplankton concentrations are among the datasets to be generated for use by natural resource managers, government, industry, academia and the military. PACE and OCI were designed and built at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt MD, and the science team is led by Jeremy Werdell of GSFC Ocean Ecology Laboratory. The mission has a 3-year design life with 10+ years of propellant for extended operations, and is part of a NASA-wide effort to characterize the climate system and interactions which cause change. (Image Credits: NASA / GSFC, Walt Feimer)

o Feb 5-9 — Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), Ahmedabad, India: International Conference on Planets, Exoplanets, and Habitability (ICPEH).

● Feb 5-9 — Gemini Observatory, NOIR Lab, TMT, Maunakea Observatories, National Center for Earth and Space Science Education, Hilo HI: Journey Through the Universe 20th Year.

☆ Feb 5 — Apollo Asteroid 2015 KQ57: Near-Earth Flyby (0.071 AU)

TUESDAY

★ Feb 6 — SpaceX, Launch Falcon 9 / PACE, SLC 40 Cape Canaveral SFS FL: Falcon 9 to launch NASA’s Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) to observe global ocean color, biochemistry and ecology; 01:30 EST.

o Feb 6-7 — Scottish Chambers of Commerce, Space Trade Association, Space Scotland, ADS, Space Network Scotland, Univ. of Edinburgh, et al, Glasgow, Scotland: Space Suppliers Summit 2024; with representatives from JAXA, ESA, Airbus, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, MDA, Highlands and Islands Enterprise.