As the world whirls ever closer to the time when men will break their bonds of gravity with mother earth and journey into the far reaches of interplanetary space, diverse programs of scientific spatial research are of prime importance. Among such programs is the varied work of the University of Toronto's Institute for Aerospace Studies. Here, in addition to detailed inquiries into safety factors involved in manned atmospheric flight (of immediate vital concern with supersonic jet liners already on the way), the institute is also deeply involved with studies into physical conditions that will be met by spaceships returning from voyages to Mars or Venus. By means of a hypersonic gun they simulate in the laboratory the operating velocities of spacecraft (35,000 miles per hour), evaluate the effects of impact by meteoroids on their hulls and gain increased practical knowledge of plasma dynamics. Such studies will help Canada continue its fine national role in the exciting exploration of future aerospace techniques.