Australia could have its own locally-designed rover vehicle on the surface of the Moon by 2026 under a deal struck with NASA by the Australian government. The project semi-autonomous rover will collect lunar soil that contains oxides, with NASA looking to extract oxygen from the soil as part of plans to establish a sustainable human… Read more »
Mining tech startup, mDetect, has received a $1.5 million co-investment grant from the federal Government’s Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre to commercialise its solution for one of the most dangerous problems in mining globally. When a tailings dam at an iron ore mine in Brazil collapsed in 2019, it killed 270 people. A similar collapse in… Read more »
Internet of Things (IoT) satellite company Myriota has landed a $5.48 million contract from the Australian government for Defence tracking communications. Myriota will use its network of nano-satellites to retrieve data from sensors across hundreds of Defence platforms, forming a global, space-enabled communications network. The network, dubbed the ‘Internet of Military Things’, could deliver increased… Read more »
South Australian Internet of Things (IoT) nanosatellite startup Myriota has signed a deal with US-listed satellite data company Spire Global. The deal will see Myriota, which has its own small fleet of nanosatellites, piggyback on Spire’s low-earth orbit nano-satellite network to accelerate its IoT plans. The Australia company is Spire’s first first large-scale, commercial, IoT-focused… Read more »
Microsoft has joined Australia’s race to space with a major presence in the South Australian capital amid a partnership with the Australian Space Agency. The company has been active on several fronts while setting up shop at Adelaide’s Lot Fourteen. The tech giant recently inked a deal with Nokia and the South Australian government for… Read more »
Sydney space startup HEO Robotics, has raised a seed round to launch its HEO Inspect product. The raise was led by David Harding, founder and CEO of Winton Group. The size of the investment was not disclosed. Angel investors Tim Parsons, Matt Ryall, Christian Thaler-Wolski and Phil Hayes-St Clair also backed the round, while existing… Read more »
On August 28, a SpaceX rocket will blast off from Cape Canaveral in Florida, carrying supplies bound for the International Space Station. But also on board will be a small satellite that represents a giant leap into space for our research program here in Western Australia. Our satellite, called Binar-1 after the Noongar word for… Read more »
A satellite designed and built by staff and students from Curtin University’s Space Science and Technology Centre (SSTC) is set to head to space this week aboard the SpaceX mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The Binar-1 CubeSat is Western Australia’s first home-grown satellite and will be part of the cargo aboard the SpaceX… Read more »
A $2.1 million National Space Industry Hub to help bolster the NSW space ecosystem will be set up at Sydney startup incubator Cicada Innovations. NSW investment minister Stuart Ayres said the state was already home to more than a third of Australian space startups. “There is no better place to research, develop and commercialise space… Read more »
It’s been a momentous month for space-faring billionaires. On July 11, British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson’s Unity “rocket-plane” flew him and five fellow passengers about 85 kilometres above Earth. And this week, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ New Shepard capsule reached an altitude of 106km, carrying Bezos, his brother, and the oldest and youngest people ever… Read more »
South Australia’s reputation as the centre for the nation’s space startups has been boosted by federal government approval for a second rocket launch facility licence on the state’s Eyre Peninsula. The licence has gone to four-year-old space startup Southern Launch to establish a sub-orbital rocket testing facility at Whalers Way, near Port Lincoln, 680km west… Read more »
Space-focused tech incubator Moonshot has been awarded a $250,000 grant from the federal government’s Incubator Support Scheme to help develop space technology businesses. The grant delivers Moonshot a $500,000 boost thanks to matched backing from private investors. The funds will go towards expanding operations, launching new accelerator programs and amplifying support for local space startups.… Read more »
Over the next fortnight, Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos and Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson will take off into space, because they can, on spaceships designed by their respective companies. It’s a big moment for the private space industry. But the question comes to mind: who has the smarter plan? A billionaire’s space race On… Read more »
Four leading Australian spacetech startups have been awarded $14 million in federal government grants as part of the the Modern Manufacturing Initiative (MMI). Rocket engine designer EffusionTech, based in the Northern Territory, received $1.2 million in funding to develop and manufacture low cost, durable and high performance liquid fuelled rocket engines for the commercial launch… Read more »
Three South Australian startups have furthered their plans to support the international space industry. All based in Adelaide, the companies include Fleet Space Technologies, Inovor Technologies and Southern Launch. Southern Launch has been approved to conduct three rocket test launches from its site at Whalers Way reserve on the southern tip of the Eyre Peninsula… Read more »
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