University of Calgary and astronaut Robert Thirsk team up to get students pumped up about space research

The University of Calgary joins forces with former astronaut Robert Thirsk to get students excited about space. Tyler Barrow reports.

Before he went into space, Robert Thirsk was a Calgary boy who attended Lord Beaverbrook High School.

“I grew up in a magic little era, in the 1960s and 70s. I was a student at Lord Beaverbrook when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon,” Thirsk said Saturday from the University of Calgary, where he graduated in 1976 with a degree in mechanical engineering.

“Without a doubt, the Apollo astronauts were my heroes,” he said.

Thirsk was on hand at the U of C Saturday as part of a weekend of opportunities to learn about space science and exploration, featuring Thirsk’s own real-life experiences.

The events, which continue through Sunday, include an evening Tzavta salon with an in-depth discussion, Found in Space, two TEDx-style talks with hands-on activities and a family-friendly Hot Chocolate with a Marshmallow launch event.

Thirsk appeared Saturday at Found in Space with Emma Spanswick, talking about the role the University of Calgary played in his development and in the overall Canadian space program.

“U of C has a distinguished history in space science,” Thirsk said, “Especially in this thing called space weather.

“We’re going to broadcast the accomplishments of the U of C today and some of our research endeavors and also what the future is for the university and Canada in space.”

Or, as U of C Dean of Science Kristin Baetz puts it: “We really hit above our weight In space research.”

The weekend is a pitch to students to consider pursuing an education in science, Baetz said, because science is a growth industry.

“The field is expanding rapidly. We have gone from just 10 years ago where we only had NASA and ESA sending up rockets to now it’s actually a burgeoning industry – and the City of Calgary will be one of the major hubs in aerospace.

“So the city needs more scientists.”

As for Thirsk, he said he hopes to inspire one or two students to develop the same passion for space research that he had.

And what was it like, on the two missions he flew into outer space?

“It’s difficult to answer that question in less than half an hour but in a nutshell: it was magical, surreal, (a) fulfillment of a childhood dream,” he said. “Working with the best organizations in the world –- the Canadian Space agency, NASA, the European Space Agency – on an international stage.

“Flying around like Superman for six months and looking out the window viewing my hometown, my home country, the world – everything is one, everyone is connected.

“Just wonderful!”

To learn more about the University of Calgary’s faculty of science, go here.

With files from CTV’s Tyler Barrow