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News Archives

News flash - Day 1 - Thursday, april 19, 2001

Today, CSA Astronaut Chris Hadfield and the crew of Endeavour will launch from Kennedy Space Center at 2:41 EDT. It will take only 8 ½ minutes for the crew of STS-100 to reach orbit. During this 12-day mission, Colonel Hadfield will be bringing the first piece of Canada's contribution, Canadarm2, to the International Space Station. Furthermore, in order to install Canadarm2 to its permanent home in space, Chris will be the first Canadian to ever perform a spacewalk.

How to participate to the mission:
Each day of the mission, tune in the KidStation for Cosmofans! Click on the robot holding a question mark to get the appropriate answer. You can also click on the main image to learn interesting things about robotics and Chris' mission among other things. Finally, we invite you to do the Technoteacher activities and visit our Canadarm2 section to familiarize yourself with this extraordinary Canadian robotic arm.

Launch pictures:

News flash - Day 2 - Friday, april 20, 2001

Yesterday’s blast-off was flawless and magnificent! Today, in preparation for the first Canadian spacewalk, the crew verifies the Canadarm and the Canadian Space Vision System. The crew also inspects the payloads (Canadarm2, an Italian-built module called the MPLM and an UHF antenna), the spacesuits, tethers and tools that will be used in each of the three spacewalks.

News flash - Day 3 - Saturday, april 21, 2001

The good ship Endeavour docks with the International Space Station, bringing the third Canadian to the largest floating laboratory in the history of the world! Chris doesn’t get to meet the Expedition 2 crew yet. The hatches between the shuttle and the Space Station are still closed. But the time has come to take step 2 in preparing the shuttle and its spacewalkers for their tasks the very next day. The air pressure in the shuttle is lowered from 14.7 pounds per square inch (psi) to 10.2 psi.

News flash - Day 4 - Sunday, april 22, 2001

The day for which we’ve all been waiting for has finally come! The shuttle’s payload bays are finally opened and the Canadarm, the grandfather of Canadian space robotics, lifts Canadarm2’s transport cradle out of the payload bay and attaches it to the Station. Today, Canadian Space Agency Astronaut Col. Chris Hadfield leaves the safety of the space shuttle to climb onto the end of the Canadarm. With his feet tethered firmly to its end, he will use great strength and skill to unbolt the 8 megabolts and 32 smaller bolts. At the end of today’s spacewalk, Canadarm2 will be given the command to raise its booms and park itself next to the Destiny module until tomorrow and the next set of challenges!

News flash - Day 5 - Monday, april 23, 2001

The hatch between the space shuttle and the International Space Station are opened and CSA Astronaut Col. Chris Hadfield visits the Station for the very first time since docking to the Station two days before. Canadarm2 is commanded to reach out and grasp a Power Data Grapple Fixture on the Destiny module, effectively requiring it to walk off its shipping cradle. This successful act commits the new icon of Canadian space robotics to its lifelong tasks of building and maintaining the International Space Station. There is no turning back now!

News flash - Day 6 - Tuesday, april 24, 2001

CSA Astronaut Chris Hadfield doubles as an-out-of-this-world electrician as he and NASA Astronaut Scott Parazynski rewire the Power Data Grapple Fixture, the power source for the arm.

News flash - Day 7 - Wednesday, april 25, 2001

Today’s activities, including the first Canadian handshake in space between the Station’s new robotic arm and the shuttle’s arm, are postponed until flight controllers can determine what happened with the Command and Control Computer on board the International Space Station, which stopped functioning last night.

News flash - Day 8 - Thursday, april 26, 2001

The main result of yesterday’s computer problem was the loss of communication and data transfer between the Space Station Flight Control Room and the Station. Luckily however, communication was possible through Endeavour, allowing the crew and flight controllers to talk to one another.

A third spacewalk was first scheduled to complete any unfinished tasks. However, Chris and Scott, our two spacewalkers, did such a fantastic job that this third spacewalk is not required. Today, the astronauts and cosmonauts aboard Endeavour will continue to reload the Raffaello logistics module with unneeded station equipment and supplies for return to Earth.

News flash - Day 9 - Friday, april 27, 2001

The ten crewmembers were told late yesterday that they would be spending some bonus time together, after mission managers requested an additional day to Endeavour’s mission. The shuttle should remain docked to the Station until Sunday with a landing on Tuesday.

Today the station and shuttle crews will continue to concentrate on the transfer of supplies and equipment form the shuttle to the station. Chris Hadfield and Commander Kent Rominger are also going to be talking with Canadian students later on this morning.

News flash - Day 10 - Saturday, april 28, 2001

With all the delays encountered during this mission due to computer difficulties the moment we’ve been looking forward to is finally at hand. Today’s the day for the first Canadian robotic handshake in space!

Canadarm2 struts its stuff as it removes its shipping cradle from the Destiny Module, transports it toward the payload bay of the space shuttle and hands the pallet to Canadarm (the space shuttle arm).

News flash - Day 11 - Sunday, april 29, 2001

Yesterday’s Canadian "handshake in space" occurred at 4:02 p.m. Central time, as Canadarm2 – operated by Expedition Two crew member Susan Helms – transferred its launch cradle over to Canadarm, with Canadian Space Agency Astronaut Chris Hadfield at the controls. The successful exchange of the pallet was the last remaining objective of the mission to be accomplished.

The Expedition 2 astronauts and the crew of STS-100 say goodbye today, ending an eight-day. The hatches between the two spacecraft close and Endeavour undocks from the International Space Station. Canadarm2 will be powered up so that the Expedition Crew can view the undocking via the robot arm’s cameras.

News flash - Day 12 - Monday, april 30, 2001

With a gentle push from springs in the docking module, Endeavour backed slowly away from the International Space Station at 12:34 p.m. CDT yesterday.

Today is spent transforming spacecraft Endeavour back into a vehicle that will be capable of landing on Earth. All of the shuttle’s systems are checked to make sure that they are all in working order.