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STS-100 Mission Overview

Handshake in space

When the shuttle's Canadarm was first deployed, Canadians were riveted to their television sets as the arm, with the Canada wordmark displayed proudly on its side, began to move exactly as its developers had planned. Since then the Canadarm has been emblazoned in the nation's psyche as an icon of Canadian "can-do" and has been recognized internationally as a symbol of excellence in robotic technology.

The Canadarm2 is then deployed and attaches itself to a power data grapple fixture (PDGF) on the Destiny module. Once attached to Destiny, the Canadarm2 transfers the pallet on which it was transported in the Shuttle, to the Canadarm, which, in turn, puts the pallet back in the Shuttle's cargo bay.

In April 2001, Canadians were once more captivated as Canadarm2, the next-generation robotic arm, was deployed and installed on the International Space Station. But their eyes weren't only on the new Canadarm2. To top it all off, they were also watching as one of their own, Canadian Space Agency Astronaut Chris Hadfield, stepped out of the Shuttle and into Canadian history as the first Canadian ever to perform a spacewalk.

So, even though it was a few months past Christmas, Chris Hadfield spent part of his time on his next Space Shuttle flight unwrapping what he calls "a huge present," Canadarm2. The "unwrapping" took place while Hadfield was floating outside the Shuttle as the first Canadian to do a spacewalk. "I’m going outside to help build Canada’s piece of the Space Station," he said. "I’m going to be the guy who puts it together and puts it on the Station."

The main purpose of Mission STS-100/6A was to deliver Canadarm2, (also known by its technical name, the Space Station Remote Manipulator System or SSRMS) to the Station, which is currently being assembled piece by piece about 400 kilometres above Earth. This robotic arm is the "construction crane" that will help build and maintain the Station. Getting the arm installed and working is critical to the rest of the construction schedule, which is expected to continue until 2006.

"We would not be able to handle the International Space Station without the Canadarm2. Every single mission will need it," says Savinder Sachdev, Acting Director General of Space Systems for the Canadian Space Agency.

In fact, Canadarm2 is essential to the very next shuttle mission, STS-104/7A, scheduled for June 2001. "That flight can’t go until the Canadarm2 is up and working," said Hadfield. "Canadarm2 needs to be used to lift the next payload, the station airlock."

This airlock will permit astronauts to exit the Station for spacewalks, which are also essential to completing assembly of the Station. The mammoth construction job will require an extraordinary 160 spacewalks, totalling 960 clock hours (or about 1920 man-hours)— more than twice the number of hours accumulated during all previous spacewalks done by NASA astronauts.

In addition to installing Canadarm2, Hadfield and his crewmates—including four Americans, one Russian and one Italian—installed an antenna on the outside of the Station and transfered scientific equipment into the Station from the Rafaello Multi-Purpose Logistics Module (MPLM). This is one of three reusable modules provided by the Italian Space Agency that will be used as "moving vans" to transport equipment to and from the Station. Raffaello is the second to visit the Station.