Bidspirit auction | Astronaut Michael McKay signed NASA

Astronaut Michael McKay signed NASA Space Shuttle STS-27 FDC PM Houston, TX DEC 2 PM 1988 77201. As one of over 5,300 applicants, and a then-Canadian Armed Forces Aeronautical Engineer with the rank of captain, he was selected in 1992 for Space Team Canada of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). McKay was selected as an alternate after Robert Stewart left the Canadian Space Agency program to accept a position at the University of Calgary. He was one of the four original members in the Canadian Astronaut Program (CAP). He resigned from the Astronaut Corps in early 1995 for medical reasons, but remained in the employment of CAP as an engineer. He worked on the Advanced Space Vision System and the robotic arms for the International Space Station, nicknamed Canadarm. The first Space Shuttle mission to include his work was the Space Vision System support to the Wake Shield Facility, a free flying payload that was released from Space Shuttle Discovery on STS-60. Shortly thereafter, in February 1994, now-Major McKay was one of four astronauts who participated in the Canadian Astronaut Program Space Unit Life Simulation (CAPSULS), a 7-day simulated space mission which was preceded by several weeks of intensive training. In early 1995, Major McKay resigned from the Astronaut Corps for medical reasons. He remained in the employment of CAP as an engineer and was actively involved in mission support activities. He was appointed Project Manager for the Canadian Space Vision System and was the Mission Manager for the STS-85 mission, also Shuttle Discovery. Fellow Canadian Bjarni Tryggvason flew on STS-85 as a Payload Specialist.