Marc Garneau had already been strapped into his seat aboard the space shuttle Challengerfor two hours before hearing the countdown that would make him CanadaB次元官网网址檚 first man in space.
Ten B次元官网网址� nine B次元官网网址� eight B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淎m I ready for this?B次元官网网址� he recalls thinking 40 years ago. B次元官网网址淵ou know that this is the beginning of something. All of Canada was looking.B次元官网网址�
Seven B次元官网网址� six B次元官网网址� five B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淒id I tell my wife and my children that I loved them?B次元官网网址�
Four B次元官网网址� three B次元官网网址� two B次元官网网址� one B次元官网网址�
Blast off!
B次元官网网址淓ight-and-a-half minutes of a rock B次元官网网址榥B次元官网网址� roll ride,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淟ife is not a totally safe experience.B次元官网网址�
Everything changed for Garneau after that Oct. 5, 1984 ascent, from his attitude toward risk to his attitude toward Earth. And Canadians, he said, woke up to a new reality: that their country was not only a participant in the race to space but a pacesetter.
Garneau reflects on that historic day B次元官网网址� and his journey from space to politics B次元官网网址� in his memoir B次元官网网址淎 Most Extraordinary Ride,B次元官网网址� released Tuesday by Signal, an imprint of Penguin Random House Canada.
B次元官网网址淢ost Canadians knew not very much about the Canadian space program,B次元官网网址� Garneau, 75, said in a recent interview.B次元官网网址漈hey were not aware that we were the third country to have a satellite in space.
B次元官网网址淭hey were really not aware that Canada was a leader. IB次元官网网址檝e used the last 40 years to point out B次元官网网址� we are a space leader.B次元官网网址�
Garneau has done much more than that, including holding federal cabinet positions in Justin TrudeauB次元官网网址檚 Liberal government before retiring from politics last year. Before he became one of the first six Canadians to enter NASAB次元官网网址檚 astronaut program, the Quebec City native had earned a doctorate in electrical engineering and had a long career in the Royal Canadian Navy.
Buthe saidnothing compares to the intensity of sitting in the space shuttleB次元官网网址檚 cabin, uncomfortably vertical, withoutmuch to do except think about the 44 million horsepower under his seat and the great unknown he was about to enter.
B次元官网网址淭he kinds of things you think about are wide-ranging. I was wondering what was going through (my familyB次元官网网址檚) minds,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檇 trained hard but I knew that all of Canada was looking. Was I going to be able to live up to those expectations and make Canada proud? If I screw this up, this is not going to be a good confidence-builder in NASA for future Canadians.B次元官网网址�
Not only did he did make Canada proud, he built enough confidence that NASA flew him to space twice more and welcomed aboard other Canucks, including Roberta Bondar and Chris Hadfield.
Like many astronauts, GarneauB次元官网网址檚 view of the world was changed by the space shuttleB次元官网网址檚 view of the world B次元官网网址� a bright blue marble floating in airless emptiness.
B次元官网网址淭he first view out the window is seared into my brain,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淥ver the period of my three flights I changed the way I see Earth. I see Earth from a global perspective.B次元官网网址�
Three hundred kilometres above the planet, circling it every 90 minutes, Garneau watched vast clouds of smoke from a burning Amazon rainforest. He saw plumes of sediment washing into the Mediterranean Sea from spreading deserts. He saw veils of yellow-brown smog over China, California and Lake Erie.
B次元官网网址淲hen you see that thin atmosphere and realize weB次元官网网址檙e filling it with greenhouse gases and pollutants B次元官网网址hen you see these things, you realize, B次元官网网址榃hat are we doing?B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淚f we donB次元官网网址檛 take care of this planet, there is nowhere else to go.B次元官网网址�
Garneau remains proud of CanadaB次元官网网址檚 contributions to space, from the Canadarm robotic arms to the guidance system on the James Webb Space Telescope.
But he warns that technology once dominated by a few countries is now becoming a crowded marketplace. Canada has to keep up, he said.
B次元官网网址淲e started out gangbusters,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淲e are well respected in the world but guess what, other countries are putting a huge priority on their space programs.B次元官网网址�
South Korea, for example, now builds not only its own satellites but its own launch vehicles.
B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 kind of a space race going on now,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 a good thing, because thereB次元官网网址檚 so many good things that can be done in space to serve humans back on Earth.B次元官网网址�
Garneau said Canada has to stick with the spirit that he found sitting in his astronautB次元官网网址檚 chair, waiting to boldly go.
B次元官网网址淎fter flying in space, life was not as intimidating for me. It gave me a sense of confidence and it gave me confidence to move forward in life instead of playing it safe.B次元官网网址�
