Comms station to support space missions


Released 05/09/2019

The ACT Government is supporting Australian National University to build Australia’s first Quantum Optical Ground Stationfor Mt Stromlo Observatory to communicate with spacecraft.

The station will provide high speed communications technology that will complement our growing space industry and further cement Canberra as the space capital.

It will assist space science and exploration, including linking with the OSIRIS payload that will soon launch to the International Space Station and communicating with astronauts on future moon missions.

This continues Canberra’s legacy of providing vital communication capabilities in the Southern Hemisphere for international space missions.

The space industry is an important contributor to our local economy, attracting jobs, international business and world leading research groups. According to industry estimates, almost one in four of Australia’s space sector jobs – around 2,000 jobs – are currently in Canberra.

We are committed to working with Canberra’s university and research sector to build a sustainable and globally competitive space industry in the ACT.

The ACT Government has already invested in a range of space initiatives to build the capacity of the sector, including the ANU’s National Space Test Facilities and the National Space Mission Design Facility.

The station is being funded by an $800,000 investment through the ACT Government’s Priority Investment Program, which was established to work with industry, research and the tertiary sectors to attract investment and grow established and emerging priority areas of Canberra’s economy.

More information about the Priority Investment Program can be found at: business.act.gov.au/grants-and-assistance/grants/priority-investment-program

- Statement ends -

Mick Gentleman, MLA | Media Releases

Media Contacts

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Anton Gallacher

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0422 574 108

anton.gallacher@act.gov.au


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