Canadians across the country mark Remembrance Day
Today Canadians will remember and honour the sacrifice of men and women in uniform who gave their lives in service of the country's values and principles.
For the first time in 20 years, a Russian cosmonaut rocketed from the U.S. on Wednesday, launching to the International Space Station alongside NASA and Japanese astronauts despite tensions over the war in Ukraine.
"We're so glad to do it together," said Anna Kikina, Russia's lone female cosmonaut, offering thanks in both English and Russian. "Spasibo!"
She was among the three newcomers on the flight, alongside Marine Col. Nicole Mann, the first Native American woman to orbit the world, and Navy Capt. Josh Cassada. They were joined by Japan Space Agency's Koichi Wakata, who is making his fifth spaceflight.
"Awesome!" radioed Mann. "That was a smooth ride uphill. You've got three rookies who are pretty happy to be floating in space right now."
They're due to arrive at the space station Thursday, 29 hours after a noon departure from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, and won't be back on Earth until March. They're replacing a U.S.-Italian crew that arrived in April.
Their SpaceX flight was delayed by Hurricane Ian, which devastated parts of the state last week.
"I hope with this launch we will brighten up the skies over Florida a little bit for everyone," Wakata said before the flight.
Kikina is the Russian Space Agency's exchange for NASA's Frank Rubio, who launched to the space station two weeks ago from Kazakhstan aboard a Soyuz rocket. He flew up with two cosmonauts.
The space agencies agreed over the summer to swap seats on their flights in order to ensure a continuous U.S. and Russian presence aboard the 260-mile-high (420-kilometre-high) outpost. The barter was authorized even as global hostilities mounted over Russia's invasion of Ukraine in late February. The next crew exchange is in the spring.
Shortly before liftoff, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said that the key reason for the seat exchange is safety -- in case an emergency forces one capsule's crew home, there would still be an American and Russian on board.
In the meantime, Russia remains committed to the space station through at least 2024, Russia space official Sergei Krikalev assured reporters this week. Russia wants to build its own station in orbit later this decade, "but we know that it's not going to happen very quick and so probably we will keep flying" with NASA until then, he said.
Beginning with Krikalev in 1994, NASA started flying cosmonauts on its space shuttles, first to Russia's Mir space station and then to the fledgling space station. The 2003 Columbia reentry disaster put an end to it. But U.S. astronauts continued to hitch rides on Russian rockets for tens of millions of dollars per seat.
Kakina is only the fifth Russian woman to rocket off the planet. She said she was surprised to be selected for the seat swap after encountering "many tests and obstacles" during her decade of training. "But I did it. I'm lucky maybe. I'm strong," she said.
Mann, a member of the Wailacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes in California, took along her mother's dream catcher, a small traditional webbed hoop believed to offer protection. Retired NASA astronaut John Herrington of the Chickasaw Nation became the first Native American in space in 2002.
"I am very proud to represent Native Americans and my heritage," Mann said before the flight, adding that everyone on her crew has a unique background. "It's important to celebrate our diversity and also realize how important it is when we collaborate and unite, the incredible accomplishments that we can have."
As for the war in Ukraine, Mann said all four have put politics and personal beliefs aside, "and it's really cool how the common mission of the space station just instantly unites us."
Added Cassada: "We have an opportunity to be an example for society on how to work together and live together and explore together."
Elon Musk's SpaceX has now launched eight crews since 2020: six for NASA and two private groups. Boeing, NASA's other contracted taxi service, plans to make its first astronaut flight early next yea r, after delays to fix software and other issues that cropped up on test flights.
------
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Today Canadians will remember and honour the sacrifice of men and women in uniform who gave their lives in service of the country's values and principles.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump says that Tom Homan, his former acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director, will serve as "border czar" in his incoming administration.
Researchers are uncovering deeper insights into how the human brain ages and what factors may be tied to healthier cognitive aging, including exercising, avoiding tobacco, speaking a second language or even playing a musical instrument.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court鈥檚 2022 Dobbs decision eliminated the federal right to abortion, miscarriage management has become trickier and in some cases, deadlier.
The union representing some 1,200 dockworkers at the Port of Montreal has overwhelmingly rejected a deal with their employers association.
Rod Ashby was desperate to find his wife Kim Ashby after their newly built home in Elk Park, North Carolina, was swept away by Hurricane Helene鈥檚 floodwaters in late September and she went missing.
It was the first time that Canadian UN peacekeeper Michelle Angela Hamelin said she came up against the raw emotion of a people so exasperated with their country's predicament.
Applause erupted over and over at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg Sunday as the son of Murray Sinclair, a former judge, senator and chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission into residential schools, spoke about his father.
A children's book written by British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has been withdrawn from sale after it was criticized for causing offense to Indigenous Australians.
A congestion crisis, a traffic nightmare, or unrelenting gridlock -- whatever you call it, most agree that Toronto has a congestion problem. To alleviate some of the gridlock, the Ontario government has announced it plans to remove bike lanes from three major roadways.
For the second year in a row, the 鈥楪ift-a-Family鈥 campaign is hoping to make the holidays happier for children and families in need throughout Barrie.
Some of the most prolific photographers behind CTV Skywatch Pics of the Day use the medium for fun, therapy, and connection.
A young family from Codroy Valley, N.L., is happy to be on land and resting with their newborn daughter, Miley, after an overwhelming, yet exciting experience at sea.
As Connor Nijsse prepared to remove some old drywall during his garage renovation, he feared the worst.
A group of women in Chester, N.S., has been busy on the weekends making quilts 鈥 not for themselves, but for those in need.
A Vancouver artist whose streetside singing led to a chance encounter with one of the world's biggest musicians is encouraging aspiring performers to try their hand at busking.
Ten-thousand hand-knit poppies were taken from the Sanctuary Arts Centre and displayed on the fence surrounding the Dartmouth Cenotaph on Monday.
A Vancouver man is saying goodbye to his nine-to-five and embarking on a road trip from the Canadian Arctic to Antarctica.