Cosmodome is a space science museum and education centre located in
Laval, Quebec
Laval (; ) is a city in Quebec, Canada. It is in the southwest of the province, north of Montreal. It is the largest suburb of Montreal, the third-largest city in the province after Montreal and Quebec City, and the thirteenth largest city in C ...
, Canada. Cosmodome is the home to both Space Camp Canada and the Space Science Centre (a museum). Space Camp Canada welcomed its first campers in July 1994 while the Space Science Centre opened its doors to the public in December 1994.
The Space Science Centre
The Space Science Centre is the only museum in Canada dedicated solely to the space sciences and houses one of two lunar rocks on display in Canada. The one featured was retrieved by astronaut
James Irwin
James Benson Irwin (March 17, 1930 – August 8, 1991) was an American astronaut, aeronautical engineer, test pilot, and a United States Air Force pilot. He served as Apollo Lunar Module pilot for Apollo 15, the fourth human lunar landing. ...
on the
Apollo 15
Apollo 15 (July 26August 7, 1971) was the ninth crewed mission in the United States' Apollo program and the fourth to Moon landing, land on the Moon. It was the first List of Apollo missions#Alphabetical mission types, J mission, with a ...
mission.
Space Camp Canada
Space Camp Canada features 6 space simulators, described below. Each is designed to help the space camp trainee understand the difficulties of working in space.
1/6th Chair
The 1/6th chair simulates lunar gravity by suspending the user in a chair connected to a series of springs on a rail which allows for movement in an allotted area. A trainee's challenge on the 1/6 chair is to pick up objects from the ground while bouncing.
Zero G Wall
The Wall of Weightlessness, also known as the Zero G Wall, uses a counterbalance to suspend the trainee in mid air. By filling the counterbalance with water until its weight is approximately that of the trainee, the trainee is free to move in the 3 translational directions. Missions are usually given to trainees to heighten the experience and generally consist of interacting, in one way or another, with a mock-satellite suspended in proximity to the wall.
Space Station Mobility Trainer (SSMT)
The
SSMT was a device conceived with exercise while on-orbit in mind. It consists of a circular jogging pad in which a special chair and harness has been fitted. Once seated, the trainee may run freely forwards and backwards, rotating along the axis of the pad.
Manned Maneuvering Unit
The
Manned Maneuvering Unit
The Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) is an astronaut propulsion unit that was used by NASA on three Space Shuttle missions in 1984. The MMU allowed the astronauts to perform untethered extravehicular spacewalks at a distance from the shuttle. T ...
simulates the NASA vehicle of the same name. By forcing compressed air out of rubber pads, the Space Camp MMU functions as a hovercraft, and is hence able to move with little resistance. A series of motors controlled via user input allow for horizontal translations and rotations, and a large gear and hydraulic pump allow for 360 degree roll and 30 degree pitch respectively.
5 Degrees of Freedom
Multi-Axis Chair
A trainee is strapped to the multi-axis chair which spins on three axes, disorientating its occupant. The trainee's challenge at the multi-axis chair is to read words, identify images, and do other tasks while rolling in three dimensions simultaneously.
Affiliations
The Museum is affiliated with:
CMA,
CHIN
The chin is the forward pointed part of the anterior mandible (List_of_human_anatomical_regions#Regions, mental region) below the lower lip. A fully developed human skull has a chin of between 0.7 cm and 1.1 cm.
Evolution
The presence of a we ...
, and
Virtual Museum of Canada
The Digital Museums Canada (DMC; , ''MNC'') is a funding program in Canada "dedicated to online projects by the museum and heritage community," helping organizations to build digital capacity.
Administered by the Canadian Museum of History (CMH) ...
.
References
{{Commons
Museums in Laval, Quebec
Science museums in Canada
Aerospace museums in Quebec
Space organizations
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
Museums established in 1994
1994 establishments in Quebec