July 16, 2009

Stowed on the Space Shuttle Endeavour as it rocketed skyward last night were several pieces of Canadiana.

As is traditional with many astronauts, Montreal native Julie Payette brought some items to comfort her. In her luggage, she has 23 music CDs, including at least one by an artist from each Canadian province and territory. Read more at the Montreal Gazette. 

Payette, who earned her master’s degree in Electrical Engineering at U of T in 1990, first flew on the space shuttle Discovery from May 27 to June 6, 1999. She was part of the crew of STS-96, a 10-day logistics and resupply mission to the International Space Station, and became the first Canadian to board the station. She is currently on board the Space Shuttle Endeavour.