Thread: Australia to form national space agency

Id like to agree,, we did after all make the wiring loom for the shuttle I think it was.

We're a handy bunch down here.

Wiring loom = ok.
Solid booster rocket 'O-rings' = not so ok!

We did have something like this before (early sixties) with the Blue Streak rocket and ELDO (European Launcher Development Organisation) of which Australia was an associate member. It was mainly a European operation but they did fire some of the Blue Streak rockets from Australia.
European Launcher Development Organisation - Wikipedia

I personally hope the space agency idea takes off (so to speak) and not more government pie in the sky promises.

On the news at lunch time today. They where showing old film of Woomera and some launches. We did apparently launch a satellite in 1967 from Woomera. So much potential back then that was not continued with. They where saying that about four billion dollars world wide is generated from the space industry and at the moment Australia get`s about one percent of that. So plenty of incentive to try and get a space agency up and running.
Cheers Hall

Great idea and long overdue, I think.

yes, well overdue. Given the work we had done in the 1970's on the voyager/ viking projects to mars, and the role we have played since that time with tidbinbilla etc, it really seems we missed the 'rocket', so to speak, some 40 odd years ago.

We lost our way in the 1960s.
I think we were the third country to place a satilite in orbit.
We patched up a old redstone rocket the yanks gave us and put it to work.

Some interesting footage of the Blue Streak rocket launches at Woomera in 1964. Note the LandRovers.

The Blue Streak Rocket launches in Australia (1964) - YouTube