Director of the Planetary and Space Science Centre at the University of New Brunswick, Dr Spray is a leading expert on what happens when two objects collide in outer space at very high speeds. That understanding has lead Dr Spray to turn his attention toward the development of man made materials designed to protect people and infrastructure both in orbit and on the ground.

Dr Spray is also a co-investigator for two rover missions to Mars: NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory that launched from Cape Canaveral in December 2011, and the European Space Agency’s ExoMars mission. For the NASA mission, once the rover has landed on Mars, Dr Spray will travel to California to participate in the operation of the rover and the analysis of the geological materials it collects.

Dr Spray holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology from Cardiff University, and a PhD in Earth Sciences from Cambridge University.

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It’s the hottest day of summer and you know you’re going to get a blast of heat when you get in your car. But the days of overheated vehicles might soon be over if you’re lucky enough to have Dr Pandurang Ashrit’s new thin film on your windows. Dr Ashrit is the Director of the Université de Moncton’s Thin Films Research Group.

Here’s how it works: As soon as the glass hits a certain temperature, Ashrit’s reflects all of the infrared light that turns your car into an oven. It can be applied to almost any surface, and has uses far beyond car windows, like satellites.

When facing the sun, satellites can get as hot as 150ºC, requiring cooling systems. With Ashrit’s film, they could be eliminated, making satellites lighter and freeing up payload space.

Another groundbreaking invention by Dr Ashrit is a tunable photonic crystal that will allow internet service providers to split the light upon which data travels into different “color channels” creating tremendous efficiency and freeing up bandwidth.

Dr. Ashrit holds a PhD in solid-state physics from Karnatak University in India and has worked at Université de Moncton since 1982.


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Turning fish waste into wealth. That’s what makes Dr Jacques Gagnon, Science Director at the Coastal Zones Research Institute in Shippagan, a researcher entrepreneur.

Processing plants in New Brunswick throw away up to 25,000 tons of herring every year. Why? Because all they do is remove the roe and send it to Japan. The rest, including all of the males, are thrown away. Dr Gagnon is determined to find a valuable use for it, and that he has done.

First is a compound for the treatment of diabetes. Currently in preparation for human trials, tests show it has the potential to prevent people that are borderline type II diabetic from developing the disease.

Second, and Dr Gagnon’s latest discovery is a chemical found in herring scales that can be used to give women’s makeup its translucent shimmer. Most of the cosmetic industry currently uses synthetic chemicals to do this. But more and more consumers are demanding that their makeup is made from natural ingredient. Today, Dr Gagnon is working with a major cosmetic company to develop his natural compound for commercial use. When adopted, Dr Gagnon’s innovation could make a significant economic effect on the province’s herring fishery.

Dr Gagnon holds a BSc in Biology from Université de Québec, and an MSc and PhD in Experimental Medicine from Université Laval.

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