Former astronaut Dave William says that David Saint-Jacques鈥檚 spacewalk Monday sets the stage for the next generation of astronauts and Canada鈥檚 role with the Lunar Gateway project.
鈥淭his is a historic moment for Canada,鈥� he told CTV News Channel.
Williams, a highly decorated doctor and Order of Canada recipient, completed a record three space walks during his time at the International Space Station in August 2007.
鈥淚 was able to speak to David on Saturday,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e chatted about what it鈥檚 like going outside to do a spacewalk and it鈥檚 those first few minutes when you鈥檙e in space -- it鈥檚 truly incredible moving around 鈥� in such a unique environment.鈥�
Williams stated that today鈥檚 spacewalk will inspire the next generation 鈥渙f Canadian astronauts who are watching todays spacewalk dreaming of becoming an aerospace engineer, or building the future generation of the Canadarm.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 all about what we鈥檙e doing on board the ISS, [but also] setting us up for the future, those missions beyond Earth鈥檚 orbit,鈥� he continued.
Canada is one of the major partners in the 鈥淟unar Gateway Project,鈥� a NASA endeavor that aims to build 鈥�.鈥� This includes plans for a spaceship that will orbit around the Moon to assist with missions to the lunar surface for scientific research.
鈥淚t鈥檚 exciting to see Canada鈥檚 leadership role,鈥� said Williams. The station is expected to be fully functional around 2026.
When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada鈥檚 involvement with the Lunar Gateway he explained that Canada鈥檚 major contribution will be developing a smart robotic system 鈥� the Canadarm 3 -- to assist with repairing and maintaining the outpost.
Trudeau said that the partnership in the Lunar Gateway project will see the government invest $2.05 billion over 24 years, creating hundreds of jobs and contributing $100 million annually to Canada鈥檚 gross domestic product.
