Australia has gone one step further to become a serious contributor to the global space economy with the launch of a NASA probe rocket from the Arnhem Space Center in Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory. Australia’s fast-growing space company will deliver profits far above our economic and strategic weight. Establishing a sovereign launch capability is a vital first step.
The developer of the launch site, Equatorial Launch Australia, wants to make Nhulunbuy a world-class launch site. Despite the unexpected rain and wind that forced the countdown, the rocket carried a scientific payload of up to 350 kilometers before returning it to earth. Science points to a fascinating future, especially considering the discovery of an Earth-sized exoplanet orbiting Alpha Centauri, a star more than four light-years away, that could be habitable.
The implications of space policy for the NT and for Australia are equally important.
Nationwide, launch services are rapidly emerging as a strategic asset in Australia. They must be developed as a networked infrastructure that reflects the global demands of commercial and military customers while optimizing opportunities for Australia’s space industry.
The launch on June 26 is also a starting point for the territory’s space economy. The location of Nhulunbuy, just 12 ° south of the equator, is key to its importance. Any rocket launched from or near the equator obtains an energy advantage from the Earth’s rotation which translates into a lower cost per kilogram of payload. Kourou of the European Space Agency in French Guiana is the only other major launch site as close to the equator as Nhulunbuy.
The space center offers Australia the potential to develop a space launch facility similar to Kourou that will not only launch sounding rockets, but will deliver significant payloads in a full range of orbits, including the important low Earth orbit. equatorial. This region is located between 15 ° south and north of the equator and will be crucial in supporting the needs of the states of Southeast Asia and the South Pacific and the rapidly developing economies of Africa and North America. South.
As I pointed out in a previous post, Nhulunbuy can launch space surveillance satellites to monitor our maritime approaches. Over time, these will be periodically updated with more modern satellites and, in the event of a crisis, would increase or reconstitute if lost due to hostile actions in orbit. For defense purposes only, maintaining the ability to launch satellites near the equator provides a key advantage that complements Australia’s ability to launch surveillance satellites into the sun’s polar and synchronous orbit from the site. launching Whaler’s Way near Port Lincoln, South Australia. A third site being established in Bowen in Queensland will add additional capacity. Gilmour Space Technology is likely to launch its first Eris impeller from there next year or two. Seeing these launch sites as a collective strategic asset, rather than as competitive sites, is vital. The strategic space upgrade that is being prepared is expected to offer an appropriate cooperative approach.
Greater access to space fits well with the likely future requirements of nations for mega-constellations comprising thousands of small satellites, mostly in low Earth orbit, providing broadband commercial services and Earth observation systems. The potential for “broadband in the sky” is already being established with SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network, but the expansion of mega-constellations is likely given the growing demand for broadband. aside in an information society. This is not just a new way of accessing the Internet. The mega-constellations will support a growing “internet of things,” which includes autonomous technologies, robots, and even driverless vehicles in the coming decades.
The Nhulunbuy launch site is a key element for the government of the territory in developing an ecosystem that could not only transform the use of Australia’s space for national defense and security, but could also facilitate the expansion of information technology to drive economic development and the transformation of society. Like Whaler’s Way in South Australia and Bowen in Queensland, Nhulunbuy lends itself to supporting the space launch needs of partners and allies around the world. A vibrant commercial space sector that develops satellites, launch vehicles and launch sites, combined with terrestrial applications for space services for 21st century economies and defense requirements, must be a central piece of the development path. of Australia.
For the government of NT, Nhulunbuy and Equatorial Launch Australia, a growing space launch capability from an ideal geographical location in the north should be seen as a critical national capability. Demand for launches will only increase, driven by the need for mega-constellations and the potential to support commercial space activities in orbit, on the Moon and beyond.
The potential offered by new technologies, such as reusable rocket systems, makes it possible to regularly launch even larger thrusters, especially because costs can be reduced by returning thrusters to launch sites. Expanding infrastructure to accommodate larger thrusters, including partially or fully reusable rockets, opens up dramatic new possibilities for Nhulunbuy and the NT to support fast-paced national and allied space operations.
This view requires more than a launch site in Nhulunbuy. Certainly, expanding the site to accommodate orbital-class rockets and reusable launch vehicles is an obvious step, but investing in upstream industries located for the manufacture of small satellites, payload integration, range security, and many other support activities would contribute to a space coast in the north to complement similar development near Whaler’s Way and Bowen. Investing in space-related commercial activities in Darwin to support a growing schedule of launches from Nhulunbuy, even through new approaches to the space industry, makes a lot of sense instead of keeping those activities away.
This week’s Nhulunbuy launch and upcoming launches in July point the way to a more ambitious space perspective for Australia. Sovereign space launch is crucial to Australia’s future and the launch of the first rocket from Nhulunbuy was a giant leap for Australia as a rising space power.