Posted: Wed, Jan 12, 2005, 7:55 AM ET (1255 GMT)
Canadian space company MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates (MDA) announced Tuesday that it has won a contract to begin development of a Canadian space surveillance satellite. The C$1 million (US$820,000), nine-month contract covers the definition phase of SAPPHIRE, a space surveillance system for Canada's Department of National Defence. SAPPHIRE will feature a satellite in medium Earth orbit that will observe satellites and orbital debris and provide that tracking information to NORAD. If the Canadian military decides to proceed with the project after the definition phase, SAPPHIRE will be completed by around the end of the decade at a cost of C$66 million (US$54 million). The contract is the second big award for Vancouver-based MDA in as many weeks: last week the company won a contract from NASA to begin design work on a robotic manipulator for a potential robotic Hubble repair mission.

Related Links:

•  Globe and Mail article
•  MDA press release