Last week I had heard something on the radio about the space shuttle "Endeavour" and was surprised to hear about another shuttle mission. I did not get all the details of the mission or even hear about what was going up to the International Space Station. Today I was looking through one of my favourite sources for news and read about the current shuttle mission. This time the shuttle Endeavour is carrying not only another contribution from Canada; but also Japan's first contribution, Kibo lab. Japan's Kibo lab requires two components to complete the lab; the first is to be installed during the current 16 day mission.
Early reports suggest that 'Dextre' is broken, but a comment on the news story told me other wise. Apparently the current electrical problem the robot is encountering is limited to the temporary platform that is used in transporting the component into space. Currently Dextre is not drawing power from the International Space Station. N.A.S.A. has planned on 5 space walks to fully assemble the robot; two of the five have been completed.
This is an excellent accomplishment for Canadian robotics. I am glad to hear that we are still in the foreground of space robotics. The current Conservative Government in Canada does not see space ventures in the same way the rest of Canada does. We should be proud to be creating a niche in the field of space robotics. Now all of us Canadians have a little more to boast about, it's about time that we are making some headlines.
Image source: Canadian Space Agency: Image Gallery
News Story: Astronauts start 2nd spacewalk to assemble Canadian-made robot
1 comments:
I hear they're Banging away with a Pry Bar tryin' to get something Fixed*
;)) Peace*
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