Canada’s ninth astronaut heads into space

By Alyssa Leonard

Canada’s ninth astronaut successfully launched towards the International Space Station early Monday morning.

The Expedition 58 crew took off aboard a Soyuz spacecraft from Kazakhstan at 6:31 a.m.

David Saint-Jacques and his two crewmates, NASA astronaut Anne McClain and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko, will spend over six months aboard the spacecraft. They will remain on the station until June, 2019. According to a press release by the Canadian Space Agency, this will be Canada’s longest mission to date.

“Today, more than ever, I am mindful that space is more than astronauts and more than one mission. I am grateful for the thousands of men and women who work behind the scenes, in Canada and all over the world, putting all their talent to work to make space flight possible,” said Saint-Jacques. “After years of preparation, I am ready to play my part and represent Canada on the International Space Station, where we are learning how to live and work in space so that we can continue to push the limits, explore further and expand our perspective.”

On May 16, 2016, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Navdeep Bains announced that David Saint-Jacques would be the next Canadian in space.

Since then, Saint-Jacques has taken customized training on the ISS and its various modules, the Soyuz spacecraft, Canadian and international science, and a variety of mission-specific tasks. His training has taken him to Canada, Europe, Japan, Russia, and the United States.

“This is a historic day for Canada. One of our own scientists is launching into space and I could not be more proud,” said Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science and Sport. “I’m especially excited for the young Canadians today who are watching David and imagining themselves working on the International Space Station one day. It’s all possible with a career in science.”

In addition to being an astronaut, Saint-Jacques is an engineer, astrophysicist and family doctor. He is a lifelong mountaineer, cyclist, skier, and avid sailor. He holds a commercial pilot licence and an advanced scuba-diving licence. Saint-Jacques is fluent in English and French and can also converse in Russian, Spanish and Japanese.

“I hope that through this mission, the Canadian Space Agency and I can spark curiosity and interest in young Canadians and inspire them to be the next generation of explorers,” said Saint-Jacques.