John H. Chapman Space Centre
Encyclopedia
The John H. Chapman Space Centre is the headquarters
of the Canadian Space Agency. It is located in Longueuil
, Quebec
, Canada
, in the borough of Saint-Hubert
.
, a general aviation
facility. The building was finished in 1992 and named the John H. Chapman Centre in honour of John Chapman, who is considered to be the father of the Canadian Space Program, because of his role in the Alouette 1
program.
, when seen from above. However, it bears no resemblance to real stations like the ISS
or to famous fictional ones like the wheel of 2001: A Space Odyssey
.
office and most of the administrative and technical units supporting Canada's programs in space sciences and technology. This includes satellite control rooms, the Protein Crystal Growth Mission Support Centre, and simulators for the Canadarm2, the Mobile Servicing System
, and the Advanced Space Vision System
. It also houses the Mission Operations Centre (MOC) that includes the Remote Multi-Purpose Support Room (RMPSR) that is used to operate the MSS
on-orbit in conjunction with the flight control and mission evaluation rooms at the Johnson Space Center
as well as the Operations and Engineering Centre (OEC) which supports the flight controllers at JSC
. As the headquarters for the space agency, it also houses many offices for general administrative functions or for specific programs such as exchange activities with NASA
, ESA, and other national space agencies.
45.519918°N 73.393465°W
Headquarters
Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top of a corporation taking full responsibility managing all business activities...
of the Canadian Space Agency. It is located in Longueuil
Longueuil
Longueuil is a city in the province of Quebec, Canada. It is the seat of the Montérégie administrative region and sits on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River directly across from Montreal. The population as of the Canada 2006 Census totaled 229,330, making it the third largest city in...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, in the borough of Saint-Hubert
Saint-Hubert, Quebec
Saint-Hubert is a borough in the city of Longueuil, located in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada. It had been a separate city prior to January 1, 2002, when it along with several other neighbouring south shore municipalities were merged into Longueuil. According to the Quebec Statistics...
.
Location
The centre is on the border of the Saint Hubert airportMontréal/St-Hubert Airport
Montréal/Saint-Hubert Airport is located in the Saint-Hubert borough of Longueuil, Quebec. The airport is located east of downtown Montreal....
, a general aviation
General aviation
General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
facility. The building was finished in 1992 and named the John H. Chapman Centre in honour of John Chapman, who is considered to be the father of the Canadian Space Program, because of his role in the Alouette 1
Alouette 1
Alouette 1 was Canada's first satellite, and the first satellite constructed by a country other than the USSR or the United States. Occasionally, Alouette 1 is misrepresented as the third satellite successfully put in orbit, rather than being from the third country to have one of its own in space,...
program.
Site
The building is supposed to look somewhat like a space stationSpace station
A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a crew which is designed to remain in space for an extended period of time, and to which other spacecraft can dock. A space station is distinguished from other spacecraft used for human spaceflight by its lack of major propulsion or landing...
, when seen from above. However, it bears no resemblance to real stations like the ISS
International Space Station
The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...
or to famous fictional ones like the wheel of 2001: A Space Odyssey
2001: A Space Odyssey (film)
2001: A Space Odyssey is a 1968 epic science fiction film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, and co-written by Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke, partially inspired by Clarke's short story The Sentinel...
.
Programs
The centre houses the Canadian astronautAstronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
office and most of the administrative and technical units supporting Canada's programs in space sciences and technology. This includes satellite control rooms, the Protein Crystal Growth Mission Support Centre, and simulators for the Canadarm2, the Mobile Servicing System
Mobile Servicing System
The Mobile Servicing System , better known by its primary component Canadarm2, is a robotic system and associated equipment on the International Space Station...
, and the Advanced Space Vision System
Advanced Space Vision System
The Advanced Space Vision System is a computer vision system designed primarily for International Space Station assembly...
. It also houses the Mission Operations Centre (MOC) that includes the Remote Multi-Purpose Support Room (RMPSR) that is used to operate the MSS
Mobile Servicing System
The Mobile Servicing System , better known by its primary component Canadarm2, is a robotic system and associated equipment on the International Space Station...
on-orbit in conjunction with the flight control and mission evaluation rooms at the Johnson Space Center
Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's center for human spaceflight training, research and flight control. The center consists of a complex of 100 buildings constructed on 1,620 acres in Houston, Texas, USA...
as well as the Operations and Engineering Centre (OEC) which supports the flight controllers at JSC
Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's center for human spaceflight training, research and flight control. The center consists of a complex of 100 buildings constructed on 1,620 acres in Houston, Texas, USA...
. As the headquarters for the space agency, it also houses many offices for general administrative functions or for specific programs such as exchange activities with NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
, ESA, and other national space agencies.
External links
- Canadian Space Agency official website
- Address and phone numbers of the centre
- How to get to the centre
45.519918°N 73.393465°W