Lacombe students win national space competition

News release from Let’s Talk Science / Parlons sciences London, ON

London, Penetanguishene, Lacombe and Niagara Falls students win national space competition

Students from London, Penetanguishene, Lacombe, and Niagara Falls have won the Lunar Rover Research Challenge, a new national space competition offered by Let’s Talk Science, Canadensys Aerospace Corporation and Avalon Space, with support from the Canadian Space Agency. Over 3500 youth from across Canada participated in the national competition.

Winners of the competition have the opportunity to virtually control a Canadensys lunar rover in a Moon-like environment, allowing them to interact with technology that will be part of Canada’s upcoming space mission. The classes completed a mission simulation by working as a team to drive the rover and seek out ice deposits in a mock lunar landscape.

Canadensys designed the rovers controlled by the winning teams. They recently received a contract from the Canadian Space Agency to build Canada’s first lunar rover to be sent to the moon as early as 2026.

The Lunar Rover Research Challenge allowed students to collaborate and develop a mission for lunar exploration. A panel of expert judges evaluated the submissions and determined the winners.

The following teams won the Lunar Rover Research Challenge:

Team Selene at Lambeth Public School in London, Ontario
The Earthings at Burkevale Protestant School in Penetanguishene, Ontario
Stingrays at Crestomere School in Lacombe, AB
The Goofy Goobers at Prince Philip School in Niagara Falls, Ontario

The Lunar Rover Research Challenge will run again in the new year, with registration reopening in January. This competition is free to enter and is geared toward youth aged 11-14. Interested parties are encouraged to subscribe to the insider mailing list for exclusive project updates and tips.

The lunar rover driven by students will not be the exact model that is sent to the moon. This project is made possible through funding provided by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

Quotes

“STEM skills are vital for work and citizenship demands,” said Dr. Bonnie Schmidt, President of Let’s Talk Science. “The Lunar Rover Research Challenge leverages the excitement of space to allow youth to develop essential communication, critical thinking and engineering skills.”

“The mission itself got students out of their comfort zone. The students who are shy and don’t like to speak publicly were able to communicate with other teams. They had to critically think about their decisions and work with other groups,” said Vandana Bhalla, London, Ontario, winning teacher on her students controlling a Lunar Rover. “Not only that, but they realized that they were a part of history in the making while coding the rover and getting the scientific readings.”

“Having detailed plans allowed me to implement this activity into the classroom and include some language curriculum as well,” said Austin Vavrovics, Penetanguishene, Ontario winning teacher on the overall project experience. “Seeing the satisfaction and interaction from my students during and after the project was exciting.”

“Congratulations to this year’s Lunar Rover Research Challenge winners. We are thrilled to partner with the innovative team at Let’s Talk Science to do our part in sharing this exciting next chapter of space activities with future generations of Canadian science and engineering leaders,” says Peter Visscher, General Manager, Canadensys Aerospace Corp.

“We are going to see a growing amount of activity around the Moon over the coming years, with Canada’s first astronaut likely flying to the Moon in the next couple of years, and Canada’s first lunar rover flying shortly after that. It is a genuine privilege to be able to open the experience of these upcoming missions to a new generation and seeing the wonder, discovery and ambition through their eyes reminds us all of how we ourselves felt when we first began our journey working in space. More importantly, though, it offers us a precious glimpse into what future generations may make of this new opportunity, and this is only the beginning. We are looking forward to a growing number of activities and announcements across the country over the coming months as the adventure unfolds,” says Dr. Nadeem Ghafoor, CEO of Avalon Space.

Fast facts

– The competition is offered at no cost in both French and English.
– This experience was designed around five lessons, with youth learning about Canada’s role in space, planning their rover mission and exploring careers in the space sector.
– The Lunar Rover Research Challenge launched on August 22nd, 2022.

About Let’s Talk Science

Let’s Talk Science – a leading partner in Canadian education – is a national charitable organization committed to inspiring and empowering children and youth of all ages in Canada to develop the skills they need to participate and thrive in an ever-changing world. To accomplish this, Let’s Talk Science offers a comprehensive suite of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) based programs to support youth, educators, and volunteers across Canada. For more information about Let’s Talk Science, visit letstalkscience.ca.

About Canadensys Aerospace Corporation

Canadensys Aerospace Corporation is one of Canada’s most innovative space systems companies servicing customers around the world. We blend our advanced space hardware capabilities with smart, ruggedized designs to develop unique solutions for planetary, orbital and terrestrial environments based on modern, commercial business approaches to space program and mission development.

About Avalon Space

Avalon Space Inc. is a Toronto-based space company dedicated to broadening access to and participation in the exploration and development of space. Avalon works with actors across the space exploration ecosystem, from mission developers to lunar landers & rover teams to future human missions, to help build a more sustainable, inclusive, and commercially scalable path as humanity reaches out beyond Earth orbit.

About the Canadian Space Agency

The Canadian Space Agency advances the knowledge of space through science and ensures that space science and technology provide social and economic benefits for Canadians.

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Premier Danielle Smith issued the following statement on the April 2, 2025 U.S. tariff announcement:

“Today was an important win for Canada and Alberta, as it appears the United States has decided to uphold the majority of the free trade agreement (CUSMA) between our two nations. It also appears this will continue to be the case until after the Canadian federal election has concluded and the newly elected Canadian government is able to renegotiate CUSMA with the U.S. administration.

“This is precisely what I have been advocating for from the U.S. administration for months.

“It means that the majority of goods sold into the United States from Canada will have no tariffs applied to them, including zero per cent tariffs on energy, minerals, agricultural products, uranium, seafood, potash and host of other Canadian goods.

“There is still work to be done, of course. Unfortunately, tariffs previously announced by the United States on Canadian automobiles, steel and aluminum have not been removed. The efforts of premiers and the federal government should therefore shift towards removing or significantly reducing these remaining tariffs as we go forward and ensuring affected workers across Canada are generously supported until the situation is resolved.

“I again call on all involved in our national advocacy efforts to focus on diplomacy and persuasion while avoiding unnecessary escalation. Clearly, this strategy has been the most effective to this point.

“As it appears the worst of this tariff dispute is behind us (though there is still work to be done), it is my sincere hope that we, as Canadians, can abandon the disastrous policies that have made Canada vulnerable to and overly dependent on the United States, fast-track national resource corridors, get out of the way of provincial resource development and turn our country into an independent economic juggernaut and energy superpower.”

Alberta

Energy sector will fuel Alberta economy and Canada’s exports for many years to come

Published on April 2, 2025

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From the Fraser Institute

By Jock Finlayson

By any measure, Alberta is an energy powerhouse—within Canada, but also on a global scale. In 2023, it produced 85 per cent of Canada’s oil and three-fifths of the country’s natural gas. Most of Canada’s oil reserves are in Alberta, along with a majority of natural gas reserves. Alberta is the beating heart of the Canadian energy economy. And energy, in turn, accounts for one-quarter of Canada’s international exports.

Consider some key facts about the province’s energy landscape, as noted in the Alberta Energy Regulator’s (AER) 2023 annual report. Oil and natural gas production continued to rise (on a volume basis) in 2023, on the heels of steady increases over the preceding half decade. However, the dollar value of Alberta’s oil and gas production fell in 2023, as the surging prices recorded in 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine retreated. Capital spending in the province’s energy sector reached $30 billion in 2023, making it the leading driver of private-sector investment. And completion of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project has opened new offshore export avenues for Canada’s oil industry and should boost Alberta’s energy production and exports going forward.

In a world striving to address climate change, Alberta’s hydrocarbon-heavy energy sector faces challenges. At some point, the world may start to consume less oil and, later, less natural gas (in absolute terms). But such “peak” consumption hasn’t arrived yet, nor does it appear imminent. While the demand for certain refined petroleum products is trending down in some advanced economies, particularly in Europe, we should take a broader global perspective when assessing energy demand and supply trends.

Looking at the worldwide picture, Goldman Sachs’ 2024 global energy forecast predicts that “oil usage will increase through 2034” thanks to strong demand in emerging markets and growing production of petrochemicals that depend on oil as the principal feedstock. Global demand for natural gas (including LNG) will also continue to increase, particularly since natural gas is the least carbon-intensive fossil fuel and more of it is being traded in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Against this backdrop, there are reasons to be optimistic about the prospects for Alberta’s energy sector, particularly if the federal government dials back some of the economically destructive energy and climate policies adopted by the last government. According to the AER’s “base case” forecast, overall energy output will expand over the next 10 years. Oilsands output is projected to grow modestly; natural gas production will also rise, in part due to greater demand for Alberta’s upstream gas from LNG operators in British Columbia.

The AER’s forecast also points to a positive trajectory for capital spending across the province’s energy sector. The agency sees annual investment rising from almost $30 billion to $40 billion by 2033. Most of this takes place in the oil and gas industry, but “emerging” energy resources and projects aimed at climate mitigation are expected to represent a bigger slice of energy-related capital spending going forward.

Like many other oil and gas producing jurisdictions, Alberta must navigate the bumpy journey to a lower-carbon future. But the world is set to remain dependent on fossil fuels for decades to come. This suggests the energy sector will continue to underpin not only the Alberta economy but also Canada’s export portfolio for the foreseeable future.