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Canadian Space Agency
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Radarsat-1 at the Canadian Space Agency's David Florida Laboratory in Ottawa, Ont., during testing and assembly.
Quick Facts
French:
Agence spatiale canadienne
Date:
1989 - present
Headquarters:
Longueuil
Areas Of Involvement:
space exploration
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Radarsat-1 at the Canadian Space Agency's David Florida Laboratory in Ottawa, Ont., during testing and assembly.
Radarsat-1 at the Canadian Space Agency's David Florida Laboratory in Ottawa, Ont., during testing and assembly.

Canadian Space Agency

Canadian government organization
Also known as: Agence spatiale canadienne, CSA
Written by
Erik Gregersen
Erik Gregersen is a senior editor at Encyclopaedia Britannica, specializing in the physical sciences and technology. Before joining Britannica in 2007, he worked at the University of Chicago Press on the...
Erik Gregersen
Fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
Last updated
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Canadian Space Agency (CSA), Canadian government organization founded in 1989 that coordinates spaceflight activities. Its headquarters are in Longueuil, Que. The chief executive of the CSA is the president, who is assisted by a senior vice president and the directors of four branches: Space Science, Space Technologies, Space Programs, and General Operations. The president reports to the minister of industry.

The CSA is responsible for the Earth-observation satellite Radarsat-1, which uses radar to monitor Earth’s resources, and the MOST orbiting telescope, which studies physical processes in stars. International cooperation with other space agencies is an important part of the CSA’s mission. Canadarm, the robotic arm on the U.S. space shuttles, was built in Canada. To the International Space Station the CSA has contributed two robotic systems: Canadarm 2, a manipulator arm, and Dextre, a two-armed robot that can be used to repair equipment outside the space station. European science satellites, such as Herschel and Planck, also benefited from carrying instruments developed in Canada.

Erik Gregersen