SA space rescue mission over funding cut

Cuts to the state’s burgeoning space industry are central to talks in Canberra this week, as Defence and Space Industries Minister Susan Close meets her national counterpart over $77 million being slashed from programs in the Federal Budget.

Three space projects lost funding, including the Spaceport Program and a key supply chain sub-program of the Moon to Mars program overseen by the Australian Space Agency that is headquartered at Lot Fourteen in Adelaide.

The blow comes as participants at the Australian Space Forum in Adelaide in June heard the event is shifting one of its two annual events from South Australia for the first time since it was established in 2016, when it is “taken on the road” to Sydney later this year.

Close is meeting Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic with plans to discuss space industry funding “to highlight our state’s capabilities in the sector, recognise all that has been achieved thus far in terms of sovereign capability and reaffirm the importance of space as critical infrastructure for the country”.

The Moon to Mars supply chain program was aimed at helping space organisations get a foothold in the global supply chain through NASA’s project to reach the moon within a decade and then move on to Mars.

Other programs axed are the Australian Spaceports program which was designed to support spaceports and launch sites and the Australian Technology into Orbit program.

Former government leaders have worked hard to pitch South Australia as the space state, managing to attract the Australian Space Agency headquarters to Lot Fourteen through a $300 million investment in the 2018-19 federal budget.

Close said more than 100 space-related organisations now operate in SA including some working on smaller satellites and developing sovereign satellite capability – and she added that Earth Observation technologies are a key State Government focus.

She said the Malinauskas government was not intending to cut its own funding or support to the space industry..

“Our funding for, our support for the space industry is not being diminished,” Close said.

Among current projects, the State Government is working with local companies on a mission to launch the state’s own Earth Observation satellite – Kanyini.

“Kanyini will provide high level data processing and Artificial Intelligence capabilities that will enable smart processing of data directly on orbit,” Close said.

“This will support us to deliver services including water quality monitoring, environmental management and bushfire mitigation.

7Former premier Steven Marshall lent strong support to establishing Lot Fourteen’s space foothold, which is now also home to the Mission Control Centre supporting space startups, companies and researchers in satellites.

Lot Fourteen is also home to the Australian Space Discovery Centre and SmartSat Cooperative Research Centre; the largest space industry research and development collaboration in Australia’s history.

During the recent Australian Space Forum run by the Andy Thomas Space Foundation based in Adelaide, it was announced that the next event will shift from Adelaide to Sydney for the first time in its history during December.

Andy Thomas Space Foundation chief executive officer Grace Portolesi said this would not dilute SA’s pivotal role in the industry, it was simply time for one of the two forum events held in Adelaide each year since 2016 to now be “taken on the road”.

Portolesi said the announcement was made during the 15^th space forum that attracted about 1000 people to Adelaide on May 9, the event headlined by the leader of the Japanese space agency Hiroshi Yamakawa on a first visit to Australia to speak about potential investments and partnerships.

“I don’t think we should be insecure about our state, I feel very strongly about that, I think space is borderless in a sense and the agenda is absolutely national and international and I feel very comfortable with the move to Sydney,” Portolesi, who took over the role as the chief executive officer after Nicola Sasanelli AM resigned. 

She added that South Australia is the space and defence lead and that’s “only going to get stronger and stronger” and the move was backed by former astronaut and foundation namesake Andy Thomas.

The state’s Opposition Space and Industries spokesman Stephen Patterson was concerned SA’s position as the nation’s space capital was under threat from budget cuts, saying the former government’s investment in the industry had created momentum and capability to be established through the space supply chain.

“Susan Close must show some backbone and force her federal Labor colleagues to adequately fund the Australian space industry so that South Australia’s space ecosystem can thrive and we can ensure that South Australia remains the nation’s space capital,” he said.

By:  Belinda Willis 

From: https://indaily.com.au/news/business/2023/05/22/canberra-talks-over-impact-of-space-cut-on-sa