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Canadarm
NASA awards Canada the responsibility of designing, developing, and building the Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (SRMS) for the Space Shuttle. The result is Canadarm, the 15-metre robotic arm. Canada also invests $100 million for its development contributing the first unit to the space shuttle program. Four other Canadarms are ordered from industrial main contractor Spar Aerospace Limited of Brampton, Ontario. -
First Use of Canadarm
The first operational rescue of a satellite is made possible because of the Canadarm. Because Canadarm performs so well, NASA extends an invitation to fly a Canadian in space. This is the beginning of the Canadian astronaut program. -
Marc Garneau
As part of the new Canadian Astronaut Program (CAP), Marc Garneau flew on the shuttle Challenger, STS-41-G from October 5 to 13, 1984, as payload specialist to become the first Canadian in outer space. -
Canadarm 302 is Lost
Canadarm 302 was lost during the Challenger disaster in 1986. -
Roberta Bondar
In January 1992 she was designated Payload Specialist and flew on the NASA Space Shuttle Discovery during Mission STS-42. She became the first female Canadian in outer space. -
David Levy
David Levy along with Carolyn Shoemaker and Eugene M. Shoemaker discover the comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 which broke apart and collided with Jupiter in July 1994. This was the first direct observation of an extraterrestrial collision of Solar System objects. -
Canadarm's 90th and Last Mission
The final flight of the Space Shuttle Atlantis was the last mission of the Space Shuttle program as well as the Canadarm's 90th and final mission in space. Howvever, the Canadarm and Canadarm2 have been installed on the International Space Station and will continue to be used there.
