Jennifer Pritchett
Northern News Services

ARVIAT (May 06/98) - Five Arviat hunters are on the land 100 kilometres northwest of Arviat this week recovering a portion of a rocket launched from Churchill, Man., last Tuesday as a test for Canada's first mission to Mars.

The hunters, hired by Akjuit Aerospace Inc. in Winnipeg, left Arviat last Tuesday just after 8 a.m. to search for the cylinder that contains the rocket's largest engine. The five-member team, which includes Noah Muckpah, Joshua Curley, Peter Suwaksiork, Louis Irkok and David Alagalak, were expected to be on the land near Angikuni Lake for seven to 10 days to recover what's left of the rocket.

The mission, named "Active," supported the Canadian Space Agency's test run for their first mission to Mars, as well as their use of the world's most advanced ozone measuring instrument, OSIRIS.

Launched from the Spaceport Canada commercial rocket range just outside Churchill, the rocket travelled 400 kilometres at 3,500 km/h and was in flight for 12 minutes.

Angelina Suluk of the Arviat Hunters and Trappers Organization said that the hunters were excited to take part in the important mission and were more than willing to help out. The Kivalliq Inuit Association and the HTO in Arviat were involved in choosing the hunters.

"They're there to pick up the rocket remains," she said. "We're not sure when they're coming back."

Bill Erickson, who assisted in the organization of the launch, said the Arviat hunters will be retrieving the second stage of the rocket, and possibly the payload, which contains the data equipment.

"The measurements taken were limited to the amount of time the payload was in flight," he said.

"Once it hit the ground, no more data could be obtained. And the payload and the second stage will likely land close together."

After leaving the launch tower in less than a half a second, the rocket, built by Bristol Aerospace Ltd. of Winnipeg, shot like a torpedo into the sky, as hundreds of people watched.

"I suppose the sound is as impressive as what you see -- when it goes through the sound barrier, there's a sonic boom and then it sounds like a jet plane," he added.