NASA to launch 3 rockets from private Australian space port
NASA is gearing up to launch a research rocket from remote northern Australia this month
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.NASA will launch a research rocket from remote northern Australia this month in the agency’s first blast off from a commercial space port outside the United States.
Three suborbital sounding rockets will be launched from the Arnhem Space Center on Indigenous-owned land near the mining town of Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory on June 26, July 4 and 12, said NASA and the launch pad’s owner, Equatorial Launch Australia.
The launch site was chosen because it is in the Southern Hemisphere and close to the equator.
“This commercial launch range in Australia opens up new access to the Southern Hemisphere’s night sky, expanding the possibilities for future science missions,” NASA associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate Thomas Zurbuchen said in a statement.
The 12.2-meter (40-foot), 2,200-kilogram (4,900-pound), Canadian-designed Black Brant IX rockets would focus on the Alpha Centauri A and B star systems. A third mission would study X-rays emanating from the interstellar medium — the clouds of gases and particles in the space between stars.
NASA’s Heliophysics Division director Nicky Fox said the launches more than 300 kilometers (186 miles) into space would “allow us to explore how a star’s light can influence a planet’s habitability among other things.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcomed the first NASA rocket launch in Australia since 1995. The launch site then was a military rocket range near Woomera in South Australia state.
“This is a really exciting project. This is about not just the rocket launches itself, but it’s about sending a message to younger Australians and, indeed, Australians of any age, who might be looking at retraining for future careers, of how important science is,” Albanese said.
“We want the next generation to really look at STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) as part of Australia’s future and that’s why this is an important project,” Albanese added.
Equatorial Launch Australia Executive Chairman and Group CEO Michael Jones said while NASA was his company’s first client, advanced commercial discussions were underway with another nine rocket companies.
He expected at least two more launches from the space center this year and more than 50 launches annually within a few years.