Canadian treats mission as his last

Original publication date: Dec. 1, 2000

Captain Marc Garneau blasted off aboard space shuttle Endeavour yesterday, climbing smoothly into orbit for what may be the last mission for the man who 16 years ago became the first Canadian in space.

The Canadian astronaut is part of a five-member crew that will spend 10 days high above the Earth assembling the International Space Station.

The shuttle rose from its seaside launch pad at Kennedy Space Centre in Cape Canaveral, Fla., in a blaze of light that transformed night into day for kilometres around.

"It’s a beautiful night to fly. We wish you luck. Have fun," launch director Michael Leinbach told the crew shortly before liftoff.

Capt. Garneau is the first Canadian to fly on three shuttle missions and one of only a handful of non-Americans to sit in the cockpit of a space shuttle during the eight-minute liftoff into orbit.

During the high-stress launch, he was strapped in behind the pilot and commander of the Endeavour, acting as the equivalent of a flight engineer.

While in space, his main job will be using the Canadarm to install solar power arrays on the space station and co-ordinating the space walks of two of his crewmates.

The Endeavour now begins a two-day pursuit of the 13-storey station, speeding after it at about eight kilometres per second. The shuttle is to dock with the station on Saturday and the astronauts will go to work.

Their first priority will be unloading and installing the 16-tonne tower and solar power panels riding in the shuttle’s payload bay.

After astronauts have hooked up various cables and pipes, the on-board power available to the station will increase fivefold.

The solar panels can convert sunlight into enough electricity to light 30 homes.

Capt. Garneau said in a pre-launch interview that he will be acting as the backup for almost every other aspect of the mission.

"I’m Mr. Support," he said. "I’m the bridesmaid for everybody on this flight."

On his first flight 16 years ago, Capt. Garneau, who retired from the Canadian Navy in 1989, was a lowly payload specialist — essentially little more than a passenger on board to do specific scientific or technical experiments. He was taught little more about the shuttle than how to cook his meals, use the zero-gravity toilet, and stay away from things that could endanger crew safety.

Capt. Garneau has wryly described his progress as an astronaut as going from: "Don’t touch anything that could get us into trouble," to "We’ll need your help if we get into trouble."

Although Capt. Garneau called his first shuttle flight a "wish come true," he acknowledges that it was difficult knowing his every move was being scrutinized by millions of Canadians.

And there was also the pressure of making a good first impression with NASA. "NASA had no experience with Canadian astronauts so it was very important for Canada to get off on the right foot. I wanted to acquit myself well."

His fellow astronauts say there could have been no better choice for the job than Capt. Garneau.

Steve MacLean, one of the original batch of Canadian astronauts along with Capt. Garneau, said the first Canadian in space was a leader even among that highly accomplished group.

"I’ve known him for a long time: he’s a great guy," Mr. MacLean said. "I’ve been working with the guy for 15 years now and I’m still impressed by him."

Capt. Garneau, 51, has said there is a "strong possibility" that this will be his last mission after 16 years as an astronaut, but plans to make that decision following his return.

"I am going to treat it like my last mission when I’m up there," Capt. Garneau said during a news conference a few weeks ago. "What I’m going to do is take a little bit of time to really savour that experience."