Canada S Space Minds Meet In London Ont.

Academics, industry leaders and students are among those participating in Space as a National Asset for Canada (SNAC).
The event features a wide range of out-of-this-world topics that extend beyond rockets, satellites and space telescopes.
Panelists also discuss Canada’s role in space from an ethical and medical perspective, while discussing everything from space junk to space food.
“This conference is really the first time in Canada that we have a space-focused conference where everyone from the field can come together and exchange information,” said Denis Vida, a postdoctoral fellow in meteor physics at Western University.
The conference opened with Lisa Campbell, the President of the Canadian Space Agency.  From afar, she shared her excitement about Canada’s supporting role in the upcoming Artemis moon mission and its planned lunar station.
“We are in the design phase of Canadarm3, our AI-enabled space-robotic system that Canada is contributing to the Lunar Gateway, a new space station that will orbit the moon,” Campbell revealed.
Astronaut Jeremy Hansen, who is set to join Artemis II, will also speak at the conference.
“There will be a Canadian astronaut on the moon for the first time, which is absolutely terrifying!”  Vida said.
But as Canada’s space industry looks to grow on the world stage, it faces a recruiting challenge.
Campbell confirms that just 28 percent of the Canadian space workforce is made up of women.
Diversity is also a challenge.
That’s why the Western Institute for Earth & Space Exploration (aka Western Space) is working to expand the definition of space work to include multiple fields.
“They’re engineering students, they’re medical students, they’re astronomy students, planetary science students,” said Sarah Gallagher, director of Western Space.
However, at a time of geopolitical uncertainty on earth, Vida believes Canada is well positioned to provide a safe place for space exploration.
“Canada is right in the middle of it.  So it is very good to be a Canadian student and a young researcher in Canada because we have access to both European and American scientific programs,” Vida concluded.
The SNAC conference runs until Tuesday.