| 1960s |
Canada’s long history in space situational awareness begins through NORAD, when Baker-Nunn cameras are installed on Canadian soil. These ground-based optical sensors collect, analyze, and transmit satellite tracking data to NORAD. |
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| October 5, 1984 |
Marc Garneau, a former naval Combat Systems Engineer, becomes the first Canadian astronaut to fly in space when he served as a Payload Specialist on Shuttle Mission 41-G. |
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| 1997 |
The Director of Space Development is established under the Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff, a joint organization focused on space capability development. |
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| April 22, 2001 |
Chris Hadfield, a former CF-18 pilot, becomes the first Canadian to walk in space during his second space shuttle mission aboard Endeavour. |
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| 2010 |
The Director of Space Development evolves into the Director General Space Development, which includes a small influx of personnel. |
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| September 1, 2012 |
The Canadian Space Operations Centre (CANSpOC) is established to provide the Canadian Armed Forces with better situational awareness in the space domain. |
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| February 25, 2013 |
Sapphire, Canada’s first dedicated operational military satellite, is successfully launched. The satellite collects observations of known objects orbiting between 5,000 and 40,000 kilometres above the Earth’s surface using an electro-optical sensor system and feeds this data into the US Space Surveillance Network which maintains a global catalogue of thousands of space objects. NEOSSat, the first Department of Defence Research & Development satellite, is launched. It is the world's first space telescope dedicated to detecting and tracking asteroids, comets, satellites and space debris. |
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| June 2013 |
Canada becomes the first international partner to connect and use the first Advanced Extremely High-Frequency satellite. This key arrangement allows Canada’s military forces access to a portion of the satellites’ capacity for survivable anti-jamming communications, while ensuring interoperability with Canada’s closest allies. |
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| September 22, 2014 |
The Combined Space Operations (CSpO) Memorandum of Understanding is signed. The CSpO MOU is an agreement signed between Australia, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and United States that provides opportunities to enhance cooperation on defence space activities. |
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| November 1, 2014 |
The first Space Watch shift is conducted at the CANSpOC. |
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| June 22, 2016 |
The Maritime Monitoring and Messaging Microsatellite, the second Department of Defence Research & Development satellite, is launched. The satellite tests innovative technologies in space before they're deployed on full-scale missions to improve Canada's space-based capabilities to detect ships and manage marine traffic. The subsequent Automatic Identification System (AIS) development was integrated into the RADARSAT Constellation Mission in support of a novel SAR-AIS fusion technique. |
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| July 27, 2016 |
Director General Space is moved under the authority of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), to utilize existing personnel and expertise within the RCAF to advance space objectives and projects. |
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| June 7, 2017 |
Canada’s Defence policy, Strong, Secure, Engaged (SSE), is released. For the first time, it includes a commitment to defend and protect military space assets to ensure continuous access to the space domain. SSE also highlights the need for the CAF/DND to work with allies and partners to promote Canada’s national interests in space, increase the resilience of space systems, ensure continued access to space, and promote norms of responsible behavior. |
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| June 12, 2019 |
RADARSAT Constellation Mission, Canada's latest generation of Earth observation satellites used by the federal government, including the Canadian Armed Forces, is successfully launched. |
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| November 24, 2021 |
The Canadian Armed Forces enters into agreements with US Department of Defense (US DoD) that assures access to the US DoD-owned Mobile User Objective System Ultra High Frequency (UHF) SATCOM. It guarantees reliable and secure access to worldwide Narrowband UHF service to support Beyond Line of Sight communications, which is useful in remote areas like the Arctic. |
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| May 9, 2022 |
Canada formally joins the United States in banning tests of destructive direct-ascent anti-satellite weapons as a step toward establishing norms of responsible behavior in space during a United Nations Open-Ended Working Group in Geneva, Switzerland. The ban aims to enhance space security and preserve space for future generations. |
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| July 22, 2022 |
3 Canadian Space Division and 7 Wing are established in Ottawa, Ontario. 3 Canadian Space Division is an evolution from the RCAF’s Director General Space organization. As the responsibility for space operations has steadily grown, the space-focussed team within the RCAF has been re-organized to meet this expanded scope. |
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| July 30, 2022 |
The Royal Canadian Air Force introduces the Space Mission Assurance Strategy, which outlines the RCAF’s approach to achieving enhanced resilience of mission-critical assets and capabilities. This Strategy also provides an opportunity for the DND/CAF to build and strengthen relationships with Canada’s closest allies and partners, expand cooperative initiatives in the areas of joint capability development and research and development, and leverage the immense expertise within this community to further shared interests and equities in space. |
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| September 19, 2022 |
DND/CAF and the Canadian Space Agency renew a long-standing Memorandum of Understanding Concerning Cooperation in Space Related Activities. This agreement identifies new objectives and strengthens areas of collaboration from the original, which was signed in 2001. |
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| December 6, 2022 |
The Royal Canadian Air Force and United States Space Command signed a Memorandum of Understanding concerning Enhanced Space Cooperation. The agreement will serve as a framework for deepened military cooperation in the space domain between the two nations’ militaries. It aims to increase the exchange of information, balance military space requirements, and identify potential collaborative studies, projects, and activities. |
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| February 1, 2023 |
DND/CAF and the National Reconnaissance Office of the United States of America (NRO) renew a Memorandum of Understanding for Defense Space Cooperation and Capability Development. The agreement, which was originally signed on 27 June 2018, enhances space Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) cooperation and capability development as it recognizes a shared interest in advancing the use of space and space-based systems for national security, economic development, humanitarian assistance, and other areas of mutual benefit. |
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| May 8, 2023 |
Operation STRATUS, the first named operation specific to space, is issued. Signed by the Commander of the Canadian Joint Operations Command, Operation STRATUS recognizes space as a competitive, congested and contested domain, and directs the integration of space capabilities into all Canadian Armed Forces operations. |
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