The Australian Space Agency headquarters have been officially opened in Adelaide, South Australia, with the aim of helping to triple the size of Australia’s space economy by 2030.
Opening the office, Prime Minister, Scott Morrison said the new facility would offer huge scientific and economic opportunities for Australia.
Mr Morrison said the Australian Space Agency was central to securing more jobs and a larger share of the growing space economy, estimated at over $1 trillion in size around the globe by 2040.
“Our $41 million investment into the Agency will act as a launching pad to triple Australia’s space economy to $12 billion and create up to 20,000 jobs by 2030,” he said.
Head of the Australian Space Agency, Megan Clark said the new national headquarters would be a strong base for the Agency to grow and transform the Australian space industry.
“We’re delighted to have a new home in the centre of Adelaide, and we look forward to developing the Australian Space Discovery Centre and Mission Control, which will open next year,” Dr Clark said.
“I want to thank our team for all the hard work to establish our new facility, on time, and on budget.”
Minister for Industry, Science and Technology, Karen Andrews said the opening was a chance to highlight the great opportunities space presents to everyday Australians.
“Australia’s space sector has gone from strength to strength since we established the Agency and I’m confident we will continue to build on that momentum,” Mrs Andrews said.
Dr Clark said the Adelaide facility also housed other space industry participants including the SmartSat Cooperative Research Centre and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.
