Roman S.
Canadarm
Roman S.
Richmond Regional Heritage Fair
Richmond, BC
The story of Canadarm began in the 1970s. NASA challenged Canadian engineers and awarded Canada the contract for the design and simulator facility in 1974. Canadarm – Shuttle Remote Manipulator System (SRMS) was first tested in space in November 1981 on the space shuttle Columbia.
From 1981 to 2011 Canadarm supported 90 space shuttle missions, including deploying and repairing the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). The Hubble Space Telescope captured beautiful images and provided data for thousands of scientific papers, making it one of the most iconic telescopes in scientific history. Hubble had seen galaxies, stars, nebulae, helped scientists determine the age of universe. I was possible only because of Canadarm.
From 1986 to 2001 Canadian engineers designed, build, and tested Canadarm 2. Canadarm 2 is more advanced. The robotic arm is mobile while the original Canadarm was permanently mounted on the space shuttle. Canadarm 2 can detach from the station and “walk” like a worm. It can be deployed remotely without needing a spacewalk, unlike Canadarm which was installed manually by astronauts. Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield was the first Canadian operated both Canadarm and Canadarm 2 robotic arms in space.
While Canadarm is on permanent display at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum in Ottawa, Ontario, Canadarm 2 is currently in space. It is still used for various tasks, including maintenance capturing incoming cargo ships. But what about Canadarm 3? It is currently being designed and built. It will be used on the lunar Gateway, a space station orbiting the Moon. Canadarm 3 will have two arms and will perform tasks with minimal human intervention.
During my research I’ve learned that Canadarm is the most famous technological achievement started like a simple but genius idea of Canadian engineers, Canadarm became very important to Canada. It impressed and inspired the world and became a symbol of Canada’s contributions to space explorations.
Canadarm’s legacy goes beyond the original robotic arm. Canadarm 2 would not exists without Canadarm, so is upcoming Canadarm 3 on the Gateway lunar space station.
As Chris Hadfield said, “Every Canadian should be proud of it”.
What sources and evidence did you consult for your project? What different perspectives did they provide on your topic?
My main sources were from the Internet, but I have read two books about space. Internet, inspired me with stunning photos and interesting videos. Books gave me a different perspective. They gave me a sense of history. I think both types of sources were valuable for my research.
What is the historical significance of your topic?
I think the Canadarm topic is one of the most significant events in Canadian history. It was featured on stamps and coins. Canadarm made Canada famous in space exploration. Its success demonstrated Canada‘s ability to develop cutting-edge technology to humanity’s greatest challenges. Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield has praised Canada many times. He explained that the robotic arm were Canada’s entry into space and allowed Canadian astronauts to participate in the space program. Without Canadarm there would likely have been no Canadian astronauts. Hadfield also described Canadarm 2 as a critical tool for building and maintaining the International Space Station stating that “Canadarm built the Canadarm 2, and Canadarm 2 built the space station”.
Canada inspired generations of scientists and engineers leading to improvements in the various fields like medicine and contributing to the growth of robotics and space technology.
In conclusion, Canadarm opened doors for Canadian participation in space exploration, boosted Canadian industry, and inspired many scientists in various fields.
“Every Canadian should be proud of it”.
Why did you choose this topic?
My class was learning about space, and I picked a Space Encyclopedia from the library. I saw Canadarm for the first time. My curiosity led me to the research and topic selection.
