Canada's Defense Ministry has awarded a $11.5 million contract to a Winnipeg aerospace company to develop a new microsatellite to monitor risks to the country's space infrastructure, Defense Minister Anita Anand said on Thursday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th March, 2023) Canada's Defense Ministry has awarded a $11.5 million contract to a Winnipeg aerospace company to develop a new microsatellite to monitor risks to the country's space infrastructure, Defense Minister Anita Anand said on Thursday.
"I'm thrilled to announce that we have awarded a contract for a new agile microsatellite designed, built and operated in Canada, thanks to a Federal investment of $15.8 million Dollars," Anand said at the Ottawa Conference on Security and Defense.
Anand explained that the so-called Red Wing space domain awareness microsatellite project will monitor objects orbiting the Earth to help reduce future risks to Canada's space infrastructure from space debris or human caused interference.
Magellan Aerospace, a company based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, has been awarded with the contract, Anand said, adding that the company will be manufacturing and operating the systems.
Ground stations will be built throughout Canada's Northern lands, notably in Inuvik, Northwest Territories and Happy Valley Goose in Newfoundland and Labrador, she said.
Anand emphasized that aerospace defense matters to Canada's national security and pointed out to Russia's decision to destroy one of its own satellites in November 2021 that created more than a thousand debris in low Earth orbit and now endanger Canadian assets.
"Countries like Russia are demonstrating recklessness in the space domain," Anand said, noting that such actions stand in contrast to Canada's alleged responsible behavior.
