When the space shuttle Endeavour finally lifts off on NASA’s penultimate shuttle flight later this month, for many Israelis, it will symbolize the continuing journey of astronaut Ilan Ramon.
Asaf Agmon
The Endeavour is tentatively scheduled to launch no earlier than May 16, according to NASA.
Ramon, the first Israeli astronaut, perished along with the rest of the space shuttle Columbia crew when the craft exploded on re-entry from orbit on Feb. 1, 2003.
On a visit to Toronto last week, Asaf Agmon, CEO of Israel’s Fisher Brothers Institute for Air & Space Strategic Studies – a non-profit organization that receives funding from the Israeli Ministry of Science and works with NASA to bring Israeli experiments into space – said the Endeavour mission will carry two Israeli bio-medical experiments into space, one of which is a “legacy project” from Ramon’s Columbia mission.
“There were more than 400 experiments on the Columbia. Only nine survived the explosion, and one of those was a microbiotics experiment that Ilan had brought with him,” said Agmon, who is a family friend of Ramon’s and a reserve brigadier general in the Israeli Air Force.
He called NASA’s allowing of the Israeli experiments on board the Endeavour a “generous gesture.”
The findings will provide data for research into the overall effects of space flight on the human body.
Agmon was brought to Canada by the Canadian Association for Aviation and Space in Israel, a Toronto-based organization that supports activities that “ensure that Israel’s legacy of aviation excellence continues to thrive and serve the Israeli population through education, research and advanced training,” according to its website.
Agmon also has the distinction of being the commander who headed Operations Moses and Solomon, the two renowned rescue efforts by the Israel Defence Forces to bring Ethiopian Jews to Israel.
In an interview with The CJN last week, Agmon said Ramon’s legacy continues to have an impact on the Israel Space Agency, which works at arms-length from his institute.
Astronauts and scientists from the United States visit Israel annually to speak at the Fisher Institute’s yearly Ilan Ramon International Space Conference, now in its sixth year, Agmon added.
The effect is a profound one, particularly on Israeli children, he said.
“If you ask any astronaut why they wanted to become one, they will inevitably tell you about how they listened to an astronaut talk to them in school one day when they were kids, and that [inspired] their career choice.”
The conference gathers people from the IAF, NASA and the European Space Agency, as well as Israeli science students, among others, in Ramon’s name in order to further space exploration.
The president of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), former astronaut Steve Maclean, a friend of Ramon’s, has spoken at the conference, Agmon said.
While in Ontario, Agmon spoke to CSA representatives.
Canada and Israel have the potential to “co-operate a lot on space projects” in the future, he said.
While Canada has its “space niche” in the form of robotics, such as the Canadarm, Israel also has its own expertise in the realm of sensors and satellite technology.
“We can learn things from each other,” he said.
Agmon also noted that once Endeavour’s mission is complete, the last manned shuttle launch by NASA is scheduled for June with the liftoff of the space shuttle Atlantis. After that, NASA is scuttling the shuttle program.
“The idea of [U.S. President Barack] Obama’s team is to let the private sector send humans to space” from now on, Agmon said.
This will effectively leave only the Russian and Chinese space agencies with the will and capacity to send people into space and to the International Space Station (ISS).
For this reason, the Israelis have been courting the Russians and Chinese for partnerships in space technology and ventures.
In what Agmon termed a “breakthrough moment,” the Fisher Institute was able to convince a delegation from China to attend the Ramon conference in Israel earlier this year. This resulted in the first “handshake” between the two countries space programs, he said.
“So now there is a possibility of co-operation in the future,” he added.
Regarding the possibility of Israeli and Russian collaboration, Agmon said: “I don’t see this happening in the near future.”
Currently, Israel has its largest space contracts with the Europeans.
Israel is one of nine countries with space-launch capability. The others are the United States, Russia, Ukraine, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, China, India and Iran.