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Spacesim is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to teaching people about space, as well as fostering a love and respect of the "final frontier." Explore our site to learn more about Spacesim, and we hope you enjoy your visit.

Archives: Previous Updates
Previous Updates Downloads Previous Missions: Borrelly 2007 Titan 2006 Mars 2005 Moon 2004 Ida and Dactyl 2003 Mars 2002 Europa 2001 Io 2000 Phobos 1999 Jupiter 1998 Europa 1997 Photo Archives		December 26th, 2007 Apologies from the Mission Commanders for the lack of website updates in the past three months. They plead work overload, failure of their FTP client, and confusion over the exact identity of the webmaster. Many things have taken place at Spacesim since the the last update. To give a brief summary: Mars has been selected as the destination for the 2008 mission. Astronauts have also been chosen. Our contacts with the RHHS Aeronautics and Space Association have yielded the opportunity to conduct the first astronaut exchange since Mars 2002. Andy Chen will be participating in the mission as a payload specialist, and Upasansa Choudhuri will be observing in Mission Control. Efforts are also being made to set up a duplicate Mission Control in Richmond Hill. The Hotlab has been completely moved to its new, smaller location, and wants only the construction of a door. The Engine Closet has entered the construction process, and its framing is nearing completion. A working door system has been installed on three doors and will soon spread to the remaining ones. AUXCOM has been revived. Robert Thirsk came to Lisgar and gave a presentation. October 8th, 2007 Apologies from the Mission Commanders for the lack of website updates in the past ten months. They plead work overload and failure of their FTP client. Spacesim has started off another year with an excellent turnout of new members to complement our returning members. Returning this year are the following members who now hold command positions: Nevin Hotson, Mission Commander Anthony Xing, Sub-Commander Jeff Gao, Education Commander Jen Li, Planetarium Commander Guangye Cao, originally slated to occupy the Planetarium Commander role, has elected to spend her final year of high school in Shanghai. Her absence is felt, and we wish her success in China. Our first few work sessions have resulted in a great deal of progress: the Hotlab has been completely taken down, and work will soon begin on its reconstruction in its new position. a new doors system (the Magnet-Operated Detection System, or MODS, is currently being installed Daisy Wong taught a first- aid seminar Finally, the Spacesim Forums are back online after their hacker-induced coma. All current and former members are invited to reregister at this address. January 5, 2007 Apologies from the Mission Commanders for the lack of website updates in the past month in a half. They plead work overload. Many additions to the Mission Section have been made, including a list of the Task Forces that are to be completed before the Mission. For the next five weeks, we will accomplish the work of these Task Forces. The following two weeks will be spent in double checking all the equipment, training, and securing supplies for the mission. Coronis, this year's Mission to the Comet Borrelly, will launch on Tuesday, February 27, 2007. The launch time has yet to be determined. Details will be posted in the Mission Section as they become apparent. September 13th, 2006 The SpaceSim Awareness Week will not be this week (the 10th-15th), as was said during the Safe Schools assemble but next week (18th – 22nd). We offer our apologies to any inconveniences this may have caused. In recent space-related news, the shuttle Atlantis launched recently on September 9th on a mission to deliver various components to the International Space Station (ISS), including solar arrays, a truss segment, and batteries. This mission has been plagued by numerous setbacks, ranging from lightning strikes to hurricanes. Canadian astronaut Steve McLean will become the first Canadian to operate the Canadarm 2 and its mobile base in space. More information can be found at the sites listed below CSA webpage dedicated to the Atlantis mission. NASA webpage dedicated to the Atlantis mission. In more SpaceSim related business, we are considering giving presentations to grade 9 classes throughout the school. Any personnel wishing to help should contact Brian Foo, or check the discussion board for more information. Also dealing with publicity, we have our preliminary plans for the SpaceSim Awareness Week completed, and are looking for volunteers willing to assist us in our events. Please talk to Guangye Cao for further details. We will be starting up task forces this work-session (the 15th). If you are involved in any task force currently active (bunk-bed touchup, electronics, IFFEVATS, or the food storage module), please insure that you bring all required materials, and have all necessary arrangements (provisions to purchase wood, etc) worked out. September 7, 2006 Welcome back, everyone. Spacesim is back this year starting tomorrow. Please attend the general meeting and the work session. We may be receiving some distinguished guests from CUSEDS, who are potentially interested in entering some sort of partnership with Spacesim. A new download has been added to the archives section. If you've been appointed to record the minutes at the next meeting, you may want to print out a copy of The Official OCESS Meeting Minutes. It's available here in .pdf format, and here in .doc format. August 29, 2006 A new download has been added to the downloads page. This compressed archive contains the software used by the OCESS for simulating space travel. It is available in both .rar and .zip formats." August 24, 2006 Various editing jobs performed by former Webmaster, Stefan De Young including the changing of various names of commanders on their respective pages, bringing them up to date. Minor visual changes made to many pages. One new download has been added, the Jeffrey Gao Hexadecimal System for organizing of all of Spacesim's tools and technology is now available for download in the downloads section. August 18, 2006 Our summer director selection has come to a close. Congratulations to all new directors, and we wish you good luck in your new positions. The fortunate individuals are: Guangye Cao, who adds Public Relations Director to her post of Planetarium Commander. Jeffrey Gao, who takes on the added role of Galileo Challenge Director in addition to his other Directory, being Quartermaster, and his position as Co-EEP Commander. Nevin Hotson takes on the role of the new Webmaster of the OCESS. Again, congratulations to all new Directors. Other Director Applications will be considered during the year for positions such as Office Director, Tech Director, and Quartermaster (since Mr. Gao will be leaving that position once a suitable replacement can be trained). In other Spacesim News, members are encouraged to post all of their Task Force Ideas in the relevant Forum topic (Task Force Ideas). We need to formulate a plan of action for each of these ideas, so that they can be implemented as soon as we return to active duty. Finally, there is a possibility of holding a second Spacesim LAN party sometime in the near future, before the start of school. All those interested, please post on the forums. In Space News, NASA’s Space Shuttle Atlantis will be launching on an 11-day mission at the end of this month. The Atlantis Mission will resume the construction of the International Space Station adding ports three and four to the station. More details on the Atlantis Mission can be found at this site. Also, the IAU (International Astronomical Union) is changing their definition of what constitutes a planet. The proposed changes would add Ceres and Xena to the list of planets, and would have Pluto and Charon classified as a double planet system. Full details can be found at this site. We hope you enjoy the rest of your summer, and come back to school next year refreshed. July 13, 2006 The Experiment Report for Mission Prometheus is complete thanks to Brian Foo, the Payload Specialist for the Mission. You can access the Experiment Report here, in the Experiments Section, or in the Downloads Section. To all returning members of Spacesim, please, if you have not already done so, join the members' mailing list. If you are unsure of how to do this, please contact Stefan De Young at commanders@spacesim.org. If you are interested in holding the position of PR Director, Galileo Challenge Director, or Webmaster for the coming year, please send a brief message indicating which position you are interested in to Stefan De Young at commanders@spacesim.org. Congratulations to Spacesim Members Brian and Alex Foo on their participation (still ongoing) in the Shad Valley program. July 1, 2006 Happy Canada Day! This is an important notice to all returning members of the OCESS! If you are interested in holding a director position, please indicate this interest on the relevant forum topic. Additional details will be available shortly. Website Update! The bottom "links" portion of every page now has a link to the OCESS Wiki. Please make use of this, and contribute to the Wiki Project. June 25, 2006 The annual Spacesim Barbeque was a great success. All Simmies who attended enjoyed themselves immensely including those who were appointed to Commander positions for next year. Congratulations to Brian Foo and Stefan De Young on becoming next years Mission Commanders, to Guangye Cao for returning to her post for the second year running as the Planetarium Commander, and to Jonathan Scothorn and Jeffery Gao on becoming Co-EEP Commanders. The date, place, and time for the next Spacesim Party is set. The LAN party will begin at 1330 at IGO (223 Bank Street) on the 27th of June, 2006. Nine out of Ten slots have been filled for this party, and more are always welcome! Please sign up for the LAN Party if you have not already done so. Discussions about the Rocketry Party are still ongoing on the Forums. As always, check there for the day to day dealings of Sim, and the last minute plans. June 23, 2006 The Spacesim Summer Planetarium Program has been canceled for the 2006 summer due to time constraints. The Program Coordinator sincerely apologizes for any inconvenience this may cause. Exams are nearly over at school, and that means that it's time for the annual Spacesim Barbeque. The Barbeque is taking place today at Moony's Bay beginning at 2:45 pm. Other Spacesim Activities coming up are the LAN Party on the 27th, and the Rocketry Party on the 28th. Please see the Forums for more details. May 29, 2006 The deadline for Commander Application forms has passed. All outstanding forms are to be considered "late." The deadline was Friday, May 26. The Website now has an added page! In the Education section, it is now possible to view the details of the Summer Planetarium Program. The program is new this year, and is in the process of being developed by Spacesim Member Stefan De Young. Other Members on this team include Jonathan Scothorn and Steven Mair. Extra help includes Brian Foo and Guangye Cao. Good luck to the team! May 7, 2006 The Galileo Challenge, held on April 21, and for the first time an interscholastic affair, drew a fair crowd of 28 students from assorted schools. Results will be posted soon. The Astronaut Biographies' page is complete for this year's mission. It is now possible to view data on all six intrepid explorers who gave five days of their lives to Science. April 22, 2006 The entire website has, at last, been converted into Microsoft Frontpage. There will likely be some small technical errors remaining on the website, but the next update should root them all out. If you discover an error, please e-mail the webmaster at webmaster@spacesim.org. The Galileo Challenge, a Spacesim run interscholastic space contest for grades nine and ten, took place on Friday April 21st. This is the first year students from outside Lisgar Collegiate Institute have been able to write the contest. Prizes include USB sticks, hats, T-shirts, and a free admission to the da Vinci mini-enrichment course in Toronto hosted by the Engineering faculty of the University of Toronto. A brochure containing details about the Galileo Challenge is available here or in the downloads section. April 6, 2006 The Spacesim.org website will be experiencing some technical difficulties for the next little while.The webmaster is converting the Website into a Frontpage frienly version. The webmasters of yore used Dreamweaver, but as this program is unavailable to the current webmaster, Microsoft will have to do. Please be patient when you run into an area that has been screwed up, as the technical difficulties should abate after the weekend. Thank you. April 3, 2006 The Spacesim.org website will be experiencing some technical difficulties for the next little while. There will be a meeting after school on Wednesday in the Library. Schedule changes will be marked in the announcements, and, hopefully, on the forums. The Webmaster is getting tired of having no updates, and is considering resigning his post. Mission Commanders are urged to enter talks with the Webmaster to arrive at some sort of satisfactory agreement. February 6, 2006 Important dates are approaching fast! Tomorrow there will be a worksession after school to make sure that all task forces are on schedule. Then, this Friday, the worksession will start at noon, and the only mini-mission that is to take place before the main mission will launch at 4pm. Later this month, the Gallileo Challenge will be taking place on the 23rd, so everyone must remember to work hard on that front. But the busiest day by far will be the 28th of this month. The Press Conference will take place in the morning followed by the launch of this years Main Mission. Details on this year's Mission, Mission Prometheus, to Titan, can be found in the mission section. It's "crunch time" people! January 16, 2006 The Downloads section now contains the astronaut application form which is due this Friday for all would be astronauts. Lunchtime meetings for the Robotics crew have been scheduled for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week. Check the Forums for more details. The Archives section now has information on last year's trip to Mars. Check it out! Mission Patch Chosen! January 9, 2006 Our resident graphic artist master Eva has submitted a beautiful work of art, which, in addition to having a bright future on the shoulders of our Astronauts, can be viewed in the Mission section. Thank you Eva! PS. Happy New Year! December 25, 2005 The Co-commanders, or specifically Stephen Smith, have submitted a speech. See what the leaders of Spacesim have to say in the "About Us" section. Also, the information for the 2003 mission to Ida and Dactyl has, after 3 years, finally been submitted. You can find details on that mission in the Archives. MEGA UPDATE! December 25, 2005 I have just received an excellent submission from Stefan De Young, PR Director, regarding the mission destination, Titan. The "About the Planet" section of the "Mission" section now has some new information. Regarding the same topic, I would like to invite all SpaceSim members to submit any and all research conducted regarding Titan, because the more information, the better. So what are you waiting for? Send all submissions to webmaster@spacesim.org . December 22, 2005 Tomorrow is the last day before the winter break, and as usual, Lisgar C.I. (the school that most Spacesim members attend) is holding an assembly. Uncharacteristicly, they have invited many groups to audition a skit. I am pleased to announce that the Spacesim Acting Troupe will be performing at tomorrow's assembly,and I am sure that PR. Director Stefan De Young is as pleased as I am at this recent turn of events. December 21, 2005 I hereby declare this site, re-opened. After the recession the past few years, the Spacesim website is again relevant. Though much information is still missing, all the pages (with the exception of downloads), are up to date! Please feel free to browse, and have no fear that any information you find is no longer useful! Cheers, Stefan De Young - Webmaster December 20, 2005 The Cosmic Science section of "Education" has been updated to incorporate programs develloped by last year's EEP Commander Stephen Smith, and current EEP Commander Brian Foo December 20, 2005 Major updates to the Mission section. Now it's actually relevant instead of being a couple of years out of date. The data on the 2004 mission to the Moon is now in the archives. The first major update in years! Do I feel proud! New Webmaster! December 19, 2005 After a long, long, long lack of updates, a new webmaster has taken up residence at spacesim.org With Stefan De Young on the job, you can bet that that lack of updates will reverse itself in no time! Mission to Mars! March 29, 2005 This year's mission to Mars served the dual purpose of being instructive as well as providing monkey-full barrels of fun. Astronaut insanity, hot showers and organic life forms on Mars... all these incidents and more were experienced. More detailed reflections from the astronauts themselves and images will be forthcoming in the mission section of the website. Check back soon! January 22, 2005 The Galileo Challenge is set for February 17, 2005. Entrance fees and prizes have been established. Project division sign up's have begun for the University of Toronto Space Design Contest Space Event. Please refer to the forums for more details. Space Event: B15 A, an iceberg that is the largest floating object on Earth, is on a collision course with a pier of glacial ice jetting out of Antarctica. This is being monitored by the Earth observations satellite Envisat. January 10, 2005 This year's Mission will be held on March 1 - 5, 2005. Astronaut applications are still being accepted. These will be due on January 20. Mission Alpha-quasi-Beta to Venus will take place on February 4, 2005. Liftoff occurs at 18:00. The mission will last approximately 3 hours. Attendance is mandatory for Mission Beta astronauts and ground crew. Prospective mission personnel for the 96 hour Mars voyage should also be on hand to gain experience. The mission goals are as follows: 1 - retrieve unmanned probes (OCESS + Russian) 2 - investigation volcanic activity as well as the impact of the greenhouse effect 3 - study geological makeup Last Thursday's planetarium at Earl of March was attended by nine classes. Sim expertise on site consisted of Connie, Crystal, Songyang and Stephen. Stayed tuned later for more on the EEPlanetariums front. Space Event: On January 14, The Cassini-Huygens joint mission of NASA and ESA is set to flyby Titan, Saturn's largest moon for the first of 6 encounters. The Huygens probe will be parachuted onto the surface at about 3 a.m EST, where methane oceans and rich organic compounds may exist under the opaque orange atmosphere. December 5, 2004 Visit the Downloads section to check out the new mission-related procedures and programs. The destination for this year's mission has been chosen. It is planet Mars. If you would like to do further research on the destination of if you would like to join the planetary surface taskforce, then contact the commanders as soon as possible The club photo for the Lisgar yearbook was already taken. If you have missed this worksession and would like to appear in the picture, please contact the commanders to arrange a digital edit. The Galileo Challenge will be written in February. If you would like to be a participant, please contact SpaceSim or express your interest to your science teacher. More details will be forthcoming including sample questions. To apply to become an astronaut for this year's mission, please download and complete the application form here and return it to the commanders. The webmaster position is still open. If you would like to become the club's webmaster please contact the commanders or the webmaster. Space Event: The European Space Agency (ESA) is deploying a new global positioning system. Read more on Galileo. May 12, 2004 The competition for commander positions for next year is open. The open positions are: - 2 x Mission Commander (and organization president) - 2 x Planetarium Commander - 2 x EEP Commander There is one unique application form which you may find here. Please make sure that you number those positions for which you are interested in the order of preference. The forms are due to be handed in on at the next meeting, Wednesday, May 19, 2004. You may also submit an electronic copy by email to the commanders. Some important dates for next year have already been set at a planning meeting. These are as follows: - Mini-mission: October 1st, 2004 (following the Club's Day on the 28th) - Galileo Challenge 2005: February 17th, 2005 - Mission 2005: March 1 - 5, 2005 (with a tentative assembly on the Monday of that week) March 2, 2004 The Mission Control schedule has been finalized.
	Time	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
	8-10	Alex, Quian	Bryan, Kieran	Bryan, Kieran	Kevan, Quian, Grahm
	10-12	Justin, Josh	Tynan, Val	Kieran, Justin, Bryan	Justin, Kevan
	12-1:50	everyone	Josh, Val	Josh, Stephan	Josh, Val, Calvin
	1:50-3:30	Calvin, Stephen	Alex, Bo	Alex, Stephen	Alex, Calvin
	3:30-5:45	Calvin, Bryan	Alex, Bo	Bo, Khang, Crystal	Khang, Bryan, Bo, Crystal
	5:45-8:00	Calvin, Josh	Josh, Grahm ,	Khang, Grahm	Grahm, Bryan, Kevan, Josh
Bold denotes flight director. If you have any problems with the schedule, please email Josh Zahl February 29, 2004 A reminder that it is very important to check the forums on a regular basis prior to the mission since many discussions are taking place there. The Mission will be taking place this coming week at Ottawa Tech from March 2 to March 6. The official launch time is 12:30 on Tuesday, March 2; the scheduled landing is at around noon on Saturday, March 6. The final version of the mission control shifts will be posted in the downloads section so be sure to check it out. It is imperative that you show up when you have a scheduled mission control shift so that mission control remains manned at all times. Also, there will be a Lisgar assembly (during period 2, before lunch hour) with a primary focus on SpaceSim and the coming mission on Monday, March 1. January 31, 2004 Worksessions: it is very important to show up at the worksessions prior to the mission. Experiments: a preliminary version is due on this Wednesday meeting or Friday worksession. If you will not be there, you may submit it by email to the commanders no later than Saturday. Mission Beta: scheduled on February 20th. Attendance is mandatory for all astronauts; it is very important that most members attend as the fine-tuning for the actual mission will take place at this time.. The Mission: scheduled on March 2-6. Guests are welcome and members must be active on this week. Let the commanders know if there are any particular times that you will not be able to come so that you may be properly scheduled. Once a schedule has been assigned you MUST follow it. SpaceSim Pep Rally: coming soon at Lisgar on March 1st! If you would like to speak please contact the mission commanders. Space Event: US President Bush has given a new direction to the NASA programme, targeting a return to the Moon, a permanent research station there, and an eventual mission to Mars within the next 20 years. Please take note that this year's SpaceSim mission is to the Moon and its' primary scientific focus is on the suitability of the Lunar environment for a research base. December 7, 2003 Mission Alpha: scheduled on December 12th from 5:00 to 8:30. Attendance is mandatory for all astronauts; members are expected to attend as well as there will be training for Mission Control shifts and other aspects of the simulation. Astronauts: Lucia Qiao, Michael Garfinkle, Dan Sirbu, Songyan Cai, Tong Shen, Jiayi Zhou. The astronaut bios have been posted in the Mission section. October 23, 2003 Meeting minutes: -- Next meeting: will be one for junior members since most senior members will be attending the University of Toronto presentation; junior members are encouraged to reflect upon their SpaceSim experience and identify strengths and weaknesses in this meeting. General comments and specific proposals for improvement are welcome -- Equipment: in order to reduce the possibility of loss or damage to SpaceSim equipment, if you would like to use such equipment for non-SpaceSim purposes you are required to obtain an equipment borrowing form from the Sim Office (and also to be posted here in the near future) and signed by parents. The form has to be handed in at least 24 hours before the equipment may be taken out. Note that completion of the form does not necessarily guarantee that you will be given permission. The use of the SpaceSim laptops is limited solely to SpaceSim-related presentations as well as classroom presentations -- for any other uses (word processing, email, etc.) you must use the desktop computers in the Sim Office. -- Sim Office Ethics: those that are admitted in the Sim Office must be in members in good standing or have the permission of the mission commanders; they are expected to do SpaceSim related work or classroom work. Other activities may be permitted as long as they do not perturb those that are doing work in the Sim Office and are quiet. Playing computer games is not permitted in the Sim Office. -- Sim Office Key: to enter the Sim Office you need the permission of Dr. Magwood and/or the mission commanders or a senior member who has already been admitted to the Sim Office; if you need to unlock the door you may only do so during travel time, before school, or during lunch hour. You are absolutely not permitted to ask to unlock the door once classes after the second bell (you may risk disciplinary action). -- Pilot Application Forms : if you would like to become a pilot you will need to obtain a pilot application form and hand it in to Michael Garfinkle, Josh Zahl, Dan Sirbu, or Dr. Magwood before November 7th. Note: admission is very competitive and the earlier you hand in the completed form the earlier you may begin training; those pilots with more training will be preferred (so it is to your advantage to start out early). -- Astronaut Application Forms : if you would like to become an astronaut you will have to fill in the form found in the Sim Office or from here. The deadline is November 7th. -- Planetarium Commander Application Forms: if you would like to become a planetarium commander then you should fill in the form which may be obtained from the Sim Office or from here. Note that the deadline has been extended conditionally to November 7th (meaning that if we have two or more application forms by the end of one week then the competition for the commander post will have been closed) -- Taskforces: if you have any idea/project that you would like accomplished in SpaceSim you are invited to share your thoughts with the Mission Commanders and a task force (of which you may be the leader) will be established. -- Space News Officer: if you would like to participate in content development for the website by writing weekly articles on space events then you are invited to contact the webmaster. September 14, 2003 The forums have been transferred. If you have not already done so, create a user account and participate in the discussions. Also, there will be a planetarium at Gloucester High School on Tuesday, September 17th. If you are interested in helping out either in the morning, afternoon, or both, then pick up a trip approval request form from the Sim Office on Monday and return it promptly. Lastly, the two positions of planetarium commander are open. If you are interested in applying contact us through email, or at a meeting. Junior members are particularly welcome! September 9, 2003 We invite you to peruse this website to learn more about SpaceSim. If you would like to join us, then you are invited to come to the Wednesday meetings in room 302. If you are interested in becoming a planetarium commander, let us know either at a meeting or through email. There will be a planetarium at Gloucester High School on Tuesday, September 16. Members are encouraged to come in order to gain experience. There will also be at least one planetarium training session this week. May 8 , 2003 Visit the Downloads section to check out the new mission-related procedures and programs. The mission has now been completed and the astronauts have safely returned to Earth. They have survived meteor showers, solar flares, and other emergencies. They have explored the surface of Ida as planned, and changed their secondary target to Vesta after a few navigation problems. Samples were collected and analyzed, and it was determined that Ida is indeed a Class C asteroid; likewise, Vesta is most probably a Class S. If you have any suggestions on how to improve on future missions, you may submit these to the commanders, at a meeting, or on the forums. Important: The SpaceSim Banquet will be held this Saturday at Betty's house. Check the Sim Office for details. Space Event: The European Space Agency (ESA) is sending a mission to Mars. Mars Express
April 10, 2003 Visit the Downloads section to check out the new mission-related procedures and programs. Important: Mission date has been set! It will be launching on April 22, at noon. The landing is set for April 26, at noon. Please check with the mission commanders for availability for shifts in Mission Control. Everyone is encouraged to join. A reminder to all the astronauts to hand in their bios to Betty, Ian, or Dan. They should be no longer than 150 words. Also important: Mission Alpha, the precursor to the actual mission, will be taking place on April 12th. It is scheduled to start at around 9:00. It will end late in the afternoon and following that will be a session of clean-up. There will be work sessions ALL OF THE WEEK preceding the mission (April 14-18). Be there to help prepare for the mission. If you have not already done so, it is time to join SpaceSim's public forum. Click on the message board link below and set up a forums login. A reminder that attendance at meetings prior to the mission is necessary. They will be held in room 302, every Wednesday at lunch.\ Space Event: The European Space Agency (ESA) is preparing for a return to the Moon. Smart 1, to be launched this summer, will be mapping the lunar surface and it will pioneer a new type of ion propulsion. ESA, BBC
March 8, 2003 Congratulations to all who came on the March 7 work session. Even though there was no school, SpaceSim was still operating. The mission has been set for mid-April. Everyone needs to be attending the work sessions to help prepare for the mission. There is still plenty of work to be done! A food sale event was held at Lisgar on February 28. It was a great way of promoting the SpaceSim name in school; also, it provided a tasty lunch to our colleagues. Suggestions for the astronaut's diet are welcomed. Submit these either to the commanders or the webmaster, or at a meeting. Hab update: Drywalling is in its final stages. Come and help finish it up. Work sessions are on Fridays at Ottawa Tech. Be sure to be there and help with the hab construction. Meetings are Wednesdays at lunch in room 302. Space Event: Saturday, February 1, 2003 -- Space Shuttle Columbia with a crew of seven, including the first Israelian in space (Colonel Ilan Ramon, payload specialist), was destroyed at re-entry in Earth's atmosphere. The re-entry of Shuttle Columbia was abnormal in that communications were lost 15 minutes prior to landing. At this time, the shuttle was traveling at Mach 18 over the state of Texas. There is video footage that indicates the shuttle slowly disintegrating. Debris from the shuttle has been found over a large area throughout Texas. The entire Shuttle fleet of NASA has been grounded as a result of this accident, and the three crewmen aboard the International Space Station are isolated (but in no real danger, as they can return aboard a Soyuz vessel attached to the station). What will happen to the ISS in the future is uncertain. US President George W. Bush paid tribute in a memorial speech to the astronauts who died in the accident. Although it is not entirely clear what caused the accident, there is speculation that officials at NASA disregarded warning signs. NASA, BBC, CNN, Space.com
December 29 , 2002 As we approach the New Year, we must sit back and ponder, where Space Sim is going. We must all strive in the new year to work harder to accomplish our goals. Will the habitat be in fully functioning order by the mission? Will the astronauts be fully trained? Will mission Control be in tip-top shape? Will the hab gnomes make their timely arrival? And so we sit back, and think of all the things we must do, while juggling ISU's, tests, for some, university applications, and we wonder where we'll find the time for all this. And with the coming of the New Year, also arrives once again the question of SpaceSim's survival... will tech be sold? Will we have to move again? But the students and volunteers of the Ottawa Carleton Educational Space Simulation have always been the strong willed and determined type, who pull through in the end. So, in this New Year, we should all see how we can help to make the upcoming mission the most successful one yet to date. May your circuits never release Magic Smoke, may your food be plentiful, may the dust storms and meteors swerve from your path, and may you all have a Happy New Year! Space Event: Canadian Space Agency: Space Technology Expertise
December 5, 2002 The mission patch will soon be ready. Astronaut application forms should be given in by the end of November. EEPs and Planetariums will be starting out soon. If you are interested in participating, make sure to sign up. There is a High School Planetarium coming up in mid-December at Hillcrest; volunteers are welcome. Elementary School Planetariums will be starting very soon. If you have not already done so, give your email and telephone number so that you may be included in the phone tree. Two new taskforces have been created. If you are interested in participating in the NASA Ames Research Center Annual Contest Settlement Taskfoce led by Dan Sirbu; they will be starting out soon, so be sure to be included in the taskfoce list. If you are interested in wiring, circuitry, and electronics then join the "Tech Force" led by Nik Zuchowicz. Be sure to come at meetings on Wednesdays and to work sessions on Fridays. Space Event: Beagle The astronauts for this year's mission have been selected. Here is the list of the successful candidates: Josh Zahl Betty Ferch Nik Zuchowicz Graham Preston Adrian Archer Tatiana Sametz-Dinelle We thank all those who applied for their effort. If you have not already done so, give your email and telephone number so that you may be included in the phone tree. Friday, December 6th, at lunch there will be a food sale. Those interested can cook/buy and bring their food items at the sale. It is an important fundraising event, so if you can participate it will be most appreciated. Hab update: construction is proceeding. Be sure to come out on Friday to help, because the frame and the hot lab will be put up. Friday, December 13th, there will be the club photo for the yearbook. Make sure to come to that work session. The first High School Planetarium will be held on either December 17th or 18th (to be decided which). If you would be interested in helping out, talk to the Planetarium Commanders. Be sure to come at meetings on Wednesdays and to work sessions on Fridays. Space Event: Canadian Space Agency Involvement with the International Space Station.
November 25, 2002 The mission patch will soon be ready. Astronaut application forms should be given in by the end of November. EEPs and Planetariums will be starting out soon. If you are interested in participating, make sure to sign up. There is a High School Planetarium coming up in mid-December at Hillcrest; volunteers are welcome. Elementary School Planetariums will be starting very soon. If you have not already done so, give your email and telephone number so that you may be included in the phone tree. Two new taskforces have been created. If you are interested in participating in the NASA Ames Research Center Annual Contest Settlement Taskfoce led by Dan Sirbu; they will be starting out soon, so be sure to be included in the taskfoce list. If you are interested in wiring, circuitry, and electronics then join the "Tech Force" led by Nik Zuchowicz. Be sure to come at meetings on Wednesdays and to work sessions on Fridays. Space Event: Beagle
November 7, 2002 Start working on the Mission Patches designs, for they are due next week. Astronaut application forms are ready for pickup. If you are interested in becoming an astronaut then fill one in and hand it in. This week there will be NO work session. Instead, there will be a satellite training session. If you are interested in this event, it will take place at Lisgar. Be sure to come at meetings on Wednesdays. For every update, there will be a link to an interesting current Space Event: Odissea Mission.
October 26, 2002 This year's previous updates can be found in the Previous Updates! This Friday we had the EEPs training sessions. It was fun and instructive for all those who came. Thanks to BOC Gases for their generous donations! Be sure to come at meetings on Wednesdays and to work sessions on Fridays.
October 18, 2002 The votes are in. This year's mission will be to the Asteroid Field! Be sure to come to the meetings on Wednesdays and the work sessions on Fridays. If you have any ideas for taskforces, you are welcome to submit your proposals. If you would like to join one, talk to the commanders or the taskforce leader. News : The greatest planetary find since Pluto -- a tenth planet, temporarily named Quaoar, has been discovered. For links to the story check up on: CBC, BBC, CNN, ABC.
October 11, 2002 Meetings are Wednesdays at lunch in room 302 at Lisgar C.I. Be sure to come. Work sessions take place at our facilities located at 440 Albert St., at the Ottawa Tech High-School. If you are a new member and need directions, check up the Sim Office board. We hope to see you there every Friday after school. Planetariums and EEPs will be starting soon. If you want to join, please refer to the Planetarium or EEP commanders for this year. We are currently deciding on a destination for this year's mission. If you want to make a proposal, you can do so at next week's meeting. You can also email the commanders (for email addresses, check the Contact Us). Taskforces are currently being set up. If you have any ideas for a taskforce, do not hesitate to submit your proposal.
October 11, 2002 Meetings are Wednesdays at lunch in room 302 at Lisgar C.I. Be sure to come. Work sessions take place at our facilities located at 440 Albert St., at the Ottawa Tech High-School. If you are a new member and need directions, check up the Sim Office board. We hope to see you there every Friday after school. Planetariums and EEPs will be starting soon. If you want to join, please refer to the Planetarium or EEP commanders for this year. We are currently deciding on a destination for this year's mission. If you want to make a proposal, you can do so at next week's meeting. You can also email the commanders (for email addresses, check the Contact Us). Taskforces are currently being set up. If you have any ideas for a taskforce, do not hesitate to submit your proposal.
September 11, 2002 Welcome to the 2002-2003 school year. Now that OCESS has re-established itself at 440 Albert St., the Elementary Education and Minimission programs will be fully available to elementary classes within two months. Spacesim would also like to announce the heads of Spacesim for the 2002-2003 school year. We wish the following members the best of luck: Mission Co-Commanders: Ian Cantello and Betty Ferch EEP Commanders: Shain Davidson and Aga Bajger Planetarium Commanders: Grant Harding and Andrew D. Hodgson Please note that previous updates can be found in the Previous Updates page in the Archives section. However, it will not* be activated until September 2002, after the two-month summer vacation.