Artemis II: A flavour of Canada
The Orion Crew Survival System suits that the Artemis II crew will wear on their test flight around the Moon are seen with the flags of Canada and the United States on the left shoulder. (Credit: NASA/Josh Kowsky)
2026-02-12
There's a bit of Canada on Artemis II. And no, we're not only talking about Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut being part of the crew…
Canada is certainly putting its (maple) flavour on this historic mission in a few meaningful ways.
During their training for the mission, both Jeremy and Canada's backup, CSA astronaut Jenni Gibbons, played a key role in defining and validating astronaut training and processes for future lunar missions, putting their expertise to the service not only of the mission, but also of the Artemis program as a whole.
Canada also served as an Artemis training site. Some of the Artemis II crewmembers took geology field training in Kamestastin crater to help them prepare for lunar observations and photography. Located in northern Labrador, this crater is the closest thing we have to the Moon here on Earth. Leading the expedition was Dr. Gordon Osinski, a renowned geologist from Western University's Institute for Earth and Space Exploration. Dr. Osinski is a co-investigator in the NASA geology team for the Artemis III mission.
Jenni will be playing a key role in supporting her fellow astronauts from the ground. The first Canadian to be certified as a lunar capcom – the critical voice link between the teams on the ground and the astronauts in space – she will be on console at NASA's Mission Control Center for several shifts during the mission, including the lunar flyby.
Just before launch, a closeout crew will be responsible for preparing Orion, securing the Artemis II astronauts in Orion and closing its hatches. Jenni is part of the extended closeout team. As such, she will perform voice checks from inside the capsule to make sure the astronauts can communicate with the ground as well as cabin set-up tasks and verifications.
Advantech Wireless Technologies from Kirkland, Quebec, provided amplifiers designed to operate over the special NASA frequencies used to help maintain communication with the spacecraft as it travels to and from the Moon. They are so powerful that they allow to communicate with a spacecraft up to 2 million km from Earth. The company also provided other systems for ground sites of NASA's Near Space Network and Deep Space Network that deliver critical communications and navigation services for Artemis II and other missions.
Over the course of several astronaut missions, the CSA has added a number of Canadian foods to on-orbit menus. These items not only represent Canadian identity, but they also meet NASA's criteria for nutritional value and storage.
To remind him of home, Jeremy will enjoy Canadian strawberry lavender superseed cereal, shrimp curry with rice, and natural wild keta salmon bites. But it would not be a true Canadian space meal without the maple cream cookies and maple syrup included in his menu! As Jeremy said himself, those maple treats will be a great pick-me-up for the crew.
NASA has selected 34 volunteers in 14 countries to track the Orion spacecraft during its journey. They represent government, academia, industry, not-for-profit groups, amateur radio organizations and individual experts.
Tracking a spacecraft so far from Earth is no small feat. Signals are faint and Orion's orientation changes as it travels through deep space. That's where Canada's mix of space-based, ground-based and analytical expertise comes in to keep an eye on Orion.
The CSA was allowed to provide about 150 grams of mementos for the mission's Official Flying Kit and will be flying a number of stickers and patches.
To the Moon, Canada! Enjoy the ride!
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