Canada launches test rocket toward space from Nova Scotia
A Dutch-built rocket lifted off Wednesday from a new spaceport near Canso as Canada pursues domestic access to space. It nearly reached the boundary of outer space before an anomaly diverted it.
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Canada took another step toward sovereign space access Wednesday when a Dutch-built rocket lifted off from Nova Scotia and climbed toward the edge of space.
The rocket launched at 8:51 a.m. local time from a site near Canso, where Maritime Launch Services is developing a permanent spaceport. It approached the 100-kilometre boundary that conventionally marks the start of outer space, but an anomaly during the later part of the flight caused it to diverge from its expected course.
The launch was witnessed by about 100 guests and media, including NATO officials and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, who pushed the button to ignite the rocket. Team members with the rocket's builder, T-Minus Engineering BV of Delft, said they would continue analyzing data to understand what happened. A second test rocket was scrubbed for the day, though a launch window remains open until June 13.
This marks the second commercial flight for Maritime Launch, which has a federal contract and aims to eventually launch payloads into orbit from the Nova Scotia spaceport. The federal government has committed $200 million to the facility's development, signalling growing political and economic interest in Canada's domestic launch capacity.