November 29, 2006

The world under construction

Canadian astronaut says building projects visible from space

PETER KENTER

correspondent

TORONTO

Before the Space Age, scientists speculated that the Great Wall of China would be the only structure built by humans to be visible from space.

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield says that, while orbiting the Earth in the space shuttle or the International Space Station (ISS), many of Canada’s largest construction projects can clearly be identified by eye alone.

NASA

Sept-Īles, Gulf of St. Lawrence, Quebec. Canada is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 11 crewmember on the International Space Station (ISS). Seven Island Bay (left side of the image) is one of the largest (8-10 kilometres across) and best protected bays on Quebec's north shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Sept-Īles is one of Quebec's busiest ports. The small city of Sept-Īles (30,000 people) appears in the center of the view; Pointe Noir is opposite the city in the lower left corner. The industrial park lies top left and the angled runways of the airport appear east of the city. Ships can be seen in the bay and a ship wake appears between the two left islands at the bottom of the view.

Hadfield served on NASA’s Space Shuttle Atlantis in November 1995 and on Space Shuttle Endeavour in April 2001. He is currently Chief of International Space Station Operations.

“The world turns underneath us and reveals itself on a different trajectory each time we go around,” says Hadfield. With the space station orbiting at eight kilometres per second, a space-side tour of Canada about 360 kilometres above the Earth takes around 10 minutes, he says.

“You can clearly pick out Canadian cities by eye, especially when the streets have been plowed after a snowfall. You can see the human-made objects that have a distinct contrast from the ground surrounding them, either through colour or shape. The straight lines of harbours and piers contrast with the contours of nature, so you can clearly see the big wharves in the harbours of Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Halifax.”

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield says many Canadian building projects are visible from space.

Hadfield says astronauts can also identify major Canadian highways like the 401 and 403.

“Not because of the roads themselves, but because of the medians, and the way they cut across lakes and rivers and farming patterns,” he says. “On my first flight, the 403 Highway wasn’t there, but on my second trip, you could see where it went through. The embankments on either side weren’t overgrown, so they contrasted with the other vegetation. I grew up near Toronto, so when I returned to Earth, I felt like I wanted to see that road.”

Large hydroelectric projects are also visible. Hadfield says astronauts can actually measure the progress of some Quebec dam projects by watching reservoirs fill up incrementally, orbit by orbit. Even individual buildings are occasionally identifiable.

“A domed stadium surrounded by a parking lot looks like a black circle with a little white dot in the middle,” he says.

Hadfield says new astronauts follow a typical pattern, first identifying places on Earth they’re familiar with.

“You feel a compulsion to point out everything you know and tell people, ‘That’s where I’m from,’ but after spending six months on the space station, watching the seasons change and the big sweeping colours of the forests, astronauts begin to focus on what is inherently beautiful.”

Hadfield says living in heavily populated cities creates a false perspective on land use across the globe.

“Most people think of the Earth as crowded, because of the built environment they see around them,” he says. “In fact, most of it is water, and most of the land is empty. We’re just little ants on the surface.

“When you’re out in space and you see the universe to your left and the world on your right, it highlights our overblown sense of self-importance and shows how important it is to be good stewards of the Earth.”

Hadfield adds he did once see the Great Wall of China — from the ground.

“I was told by a tour guide that it was one of two human construction projects you could see from the moon,” he says. “It’s an urban legend. It’s naturally dirt coloured and follows the topography of the ground. You can barely see it from an airliner, much less from orbit.” Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield says many Canadian building projects are visible from space.

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