Executive summary
Australia is a valuable partner to the United States and its Indo-Pacific neighbours, but when it comes to space, Australia lags behind its partners and allies. Without targeted space priorities and focused investment, Australia will struggle to ensure ongoing sovereign space capability development, undermining national resilience and restricting its economic diversification. As it stands, Australia is not on par with its Quad peers in space sector investment, yet the tools to reach parity are within reach. Australia has unique strategic advantages, a talented and driven space sector and world-leading capabilities; all of which are underpinned by its Southern Hemisphere geography and large, sparsely populated landmass. It is time for the Australian Government to match the space sector’s ambition and clear potential.
Australia has unique strategic advantages, a talented and driven space sector and world-leading capabilities; all of which are underpinned by its Southern Hemisphere geography and large, sparsely populated landmass.
This brief outlines how Australia can leverage its unique infrastructure and expertise, particularly in ground-based systems and space-based data to further develop national capability and strengthen international partnerships and alliances. These strengths and opportunities can be fully unlocked by working with the United States, as well as Australia’s other Quad partners, Japan and India, on key space priorities. Given the Australian space sector’s heavy reliance on international partners for its survival, especially those in the United States, it is imperative that Australia remains an attractive partner. Finally, the brief highlights the benefits of investment in space for Australia, such as boosting productivity and developing a future-focused workforce, calling for the development of a national space policy given the pervasiveness of space across government portfolios.
Recommendations
- Prioritise Australian investment in future-focused space technologies, such as in areas of robotics, automation and communication technologies, in alignment with the Australian Government’s current policy priorities of a Future Made in Australia and lifting national productivity.
- Recognise the importance of sovereign (not necessarily indigenous) space assets to match peer nation contributions and build national resilience, especially in Space Situational Awareness (SSA).
- Include space in the national economic and security policy conversation by setting a national space policy that unites Australia’s civil space ambitions with its broader national security frameworks and defence strategy.
Background
Australia has more than 60 years of heritage operating in the global space sector, underpinned by close international partnerships. As a spacefaring nation, Australia’s key advantage is its geographical position. Australia’s location in the Southern Hemisphere and the Indo-Pacific region is strategically valuable, and its low population density, combined with a large landmass, offers access to multiple orbits for launch and return activities, as well as a diverse landscape for Earth Observation calibration and validation needs, which ensure the accuracy, consistency and reliability of satellite data. Through its commercial space sector, Australia offers niche capabilities across the global space value chain.
Space is an important driver, not only of research and innovation, but also of economic resilience and national security, contributing A$330 million to Australian GDP1 and expanding space-related roles in the Australian Defence Force.2
Yet, for far too long, the Australian Government has overlooked space’s role as a vital component of Australia’s national policies and strategic posture in the region. Given Australia’s everyday reliance on space for everything from financial transactions and weather forecasting to national security in an increasingly contested Indo-Pacific,3 Australia lacks a clear strategic direction for its space priorities. Government investment in the domain has fluctuated since the establishment of the Australian Space Agency (ASA) as a non-statutory government agency situated within the Department of Science, Industry and Resources. It launched in 2018 to coordinate civil space activities across the Australian Government and support the growth of the domestic commercial space sector. Perhaps the Australian Government’s focus on the commercial sector, along with decreased funding with budget cuts4 related to proposed missions for the ASA, helps to explain why the ASA’s 2019 Australian Civil Space Strategy was not endorsed by the Albanese government. Of note, earlier this year, the Australian Government moved to formally dissolve the ASA Advisory board.5 This move followed several years of inactivity with significant vacancies, not filled by a call for member expressions of interest in January of 2025.6
As a result of the lack of sustained government investment and clear strategic priorities, commercial space companies in Australia are, by necessity, commercially focused and strategic in their capability development, prioritising dual-use activities that meet the needs of their international customers.
As a result of the lack of sustained government investment and clear strategic priorities, commercial space companies in Australia are, by necessity, commercially focused and strategic in their capability development, prioritising dual-use activities that meet the needs of their international customers. Yet Australia’s space companies are agile and maturing, which the Australian Government can accelerate through targeted investment into the space sector. This contrasts with other spacefaring nations that invest heavily in vertically integrated capability, often duplicated across multiple companies7 — an approach that has not been possible in Australia to date. In other words, countries such as India and Japan have worked with their domestic space industries to offer funding programs and distributed contracts across their sectors to encourage companies to develop capability across the full space value-chain (everything from electronics to space components to satellite buses). Space capability development requires large-scale government investment, including advanced manufacturing along with industry and research partnerships, and offers solutions that can elevate national productivity.
The Future Made in Australia Act: Opportunities under the Albanese government
The Australian Government is prioritising focused investment to improve industrial capability and economic diversification, as evident in the A$15 billion National Reconstruction Fund.8 While Australia’s space sector is primed to contribute to Australia’s industrial capability uplift, this will only be achievable with stronger and more targeted government investment in the sector.
Commercial space sectors cannot develop sustainably without government monetary support. Yet, as Australia’s space sector matures, the nature of investment must also mature. Historically, the sector has been sustained by continued short-term grants that foster early-stage capability development. However, the industry requires reliable long-term government investment to ensure business longevity and sustainable growth — sharing both the costs and risks of developing Australia’s next space capabilities.
Such an approach would not only be welcomed by the space sector, but public opinion polling shows that this also aligns with the expectations of Australian citizens. Polling conducted by the United States Studies Centre in 2025 finds that nearly two-thirds of Australians want the Australian Government to not solely rely on its partners for developing its next space capability, but to develop its own sovereign capabilities, too.9 As such, the Australian Government should recognise the importance of space capability for national security and economic policies.
Space is also well aligned with the Australian Government’s national agenda for a Future Made in Australia — a federal policy enacted in 2024 that aims to encourage private sector investment in priority industries to build Australia’s economic resilience.10 One of the key pillars of the Future Made in Australia agenda is supporting Australian ideas across innovation, digital and science. Australia’s space industry is already working to deliver solutions and capabilities that touch all three focus areas. Few sectors are as future-focused as the space sector, with untapped opportunities for national productivity that can be unlocked through government investment.
Recent remarks by the Assistant Minister for Science, Technology and the Digital Economy, the Hon Dr Andrew Charlton MP, seem to suggest that the Australian Government may also recognise the importance of space and the need for greater government investment:11
“It takes government backing to support these technologies in a market like Australia and take them forward. And so, too, it will take government backing in space. And that’s why I’m pleased that the Future Made in Australia agenda is about having the right policy settings and support mechanisms in place to enable us in areas, including but not limited to space, to maximise our comparative advantage, to strengthen our sovereign capabilities, to drive economic resilience, and ultimately make this a more secure and prosperous nation.”
With an active Australia-US Technology Safeguards agreement,12 as well as increased opportunities for space supply chain cooperation through changes to Defence Export Controls under AUKUS cooperation to strengthen collaboration and support technology development, Australia is well-positioned to increase the value of its partnership with the United States in the space sector. This can be achieved through targeted investment in key priority areas, which will ensure that Australia is a contributor to space capability and not only a consumer.
With a revitalised Australian focus on space under the Albanese government, along with the Trump administration’s transactional approach, the space sector presents a unique opportunity for Australia to leverage its natural strategic strength and make a distinctive contribution to the alliance — one that no other US partner could match.
Recommendation 1. Prioritise Australian investment in future-focused space technologies
Space Situational Awareness (SSA) — the tracking of objects in space to ensure a safe operations environment — is a key opportunity area for Australia. Australia’s unique geographic position and world-leading capabilities in space-based data, built upon more than six decades’ worth of experience in areas such as remote sensing and ground-based space infrastructure, can support SSA across optical, laser-ranging, telescopes, radars and in-orbit capabilities. SSA insights are elevated when aggregated across multiple commercial and international partners as cooperation in SSA can increase overall capabilities and develop a common understanding of the space environment.
Shared SSA cooperation between Australia and the United States is not a new phenomenon. Bilateral commitments are already in place to enhance cooperation in both defence and civil SSA cooperation, often referred to as Space Domain Awareness (SDA) in a defence context. This is evident in the Space Situational Partnership Statement of Principles announced between the two nations in 2010.13 More recently, bilateral civil SSA cooperation commitments have been established between the US Office of Space Commerce and the Australian Space Agency, as outlined in their Joint Statement of Intent for Cooperation on Space Situational Awareness, signed in October 2024.14
However, these existing partnerships and joint statements will only offer opportunities for meaningful cooperation that leverages Australian capability if the Australian Government is willing to prioritise investment in them. Greater emphasis by the Australian Government on ongoing capability development and procurement could bolster its national SSA capabilities. The civil space agencies’ Joint Statement of Intent, for example, does not include provisions or funding for ongoing cooperative activities in SSA. Identifying SSA as a strategic area of cooperation for Australia and the United States would require ongoing commitments to fund the Australian Space Agency’s Civil Space Monitoring Pathfinder on the Australian side. This project currently relies on a recent Joint Statement of Intent for Cooperation on Space Situational Awareness to monitor civil space, such as the tracking of spacecraft and debris, but must be funded through normal budgetary processes to continue.15 This would ensure continued investment in and prioritisation of SSA for both the ASA and Australian industry.
The US Department of Commerce Traffic Coordination System for Space (TraCSS) program is also currently facing potential cuts under the Trump administration,16 with the program designed to provide an open architecture data repository of SSA insights aggregated from the US Department of Defense, commercial providers and civil SSA data sources. This proposed cut demonstrates the need for Australia to continue to prioritise investment into its own SSA capabilities, and to be prepared to backstop potential future shortfalls in US capabilities.
Recommendation 2. Recognise the importance of sovereign space assets
To be able to fill in the gaps, either in partner nation capabilities or for its own needs, Australia must invest in its own sovereign space assets. SSA is the most accessible area because the Australian Government could invest in the purchase of off-the-shelf SSA architecture, bypassing the need to develop an indigenous solution, which significantly lowers the cost. While there is some defence investment into sovereign capabilities, such as with the award to Space Machines Companies to develop autonomous threat detection,17 Australia is well behind its partners and peer-nations when it comes to sovereign assets in space; with the Australian Government seemingly content to rely on its allies for needs from weather forecasting to GPS navigation. This makes Australia vulnerable in times of heightened need, such as during the 2019-2020 Black Summer bushfires, when a partner nation was unable to provide Australia with the weather data it requested, as its satellite was required for its own natural disaster.18 Yet, Australia brings no sovereign capability of its own to the table. This failure to recognise the importance of commensurate contributions is untenable, particularly against the backdrop of explicit calls for US allies to contribute more to their own security.19
When it comes to investing in sovereign space capabilities, Australia should look to the example of Taiwan, which is developing its own sovereign satellite network instead of relying on Starlink, following concerns raised by Elon Musk’s actions in Ukraine.
The Australian Government’s cancellation of both the National Mission for Earth Observation in 202320 and the military satellite communications program JP9102 in 2024,21 appears to signal that Australia will continue to rely on international partners for its space infrastructure. A new RFI for a defence satellite communications programme released in 2025 only offers a partial solution for defence’s satellite communication needs and will require continued reliance on international satcom capabilities.22 In today’s increasingly complex environment, both in space and politically, failure to recognise the vital need for sovereign space assets is perilous at best and foolish at worst. The vulnerabilities of relying on commercial providers have been exposed by recent events in Ukraine, seen in the ViaSat attack and Elon Musk’s capricious decision-making regarding when and where Ukraine could access the Starlink network.23 When it comes to investing in sovereign space capabilities, Australia should look to the example of Taiwan,24 which is developing its own sovereign satellite network instead of relying on Starlink, following concerns raised by Elon Musk’s actions in Ukraine.25
Recommendation 3. Set a national space policy that unites Australia’s civil space ambitions with its broader national security frameworks and defence strategy
Currently, Australia is on unequal footing when it comes to the United States and its other partners regarding its approach to space. At an industry level, the sector remains capability and demand driven, rather than underpinned by a strategic policy direction that recognises space as a critical tool for the Australian Government and national security.
Space intersects with more than 25 Australian government portfolios — fundamental to daily life, economic prosperity, and national security — yet Australia lacks a national space policy.26 While it has had several national space programs and goals, Australia has never set out a national space policy. Until the Australian Government articulates a national policy, Australia’s approach to space will continue to be fractured, and efforts to sustain Australia’s space sector will be stymied. A national space policy would provide an opportunity to clearly state Australia’s priorities in space, as well as identify opportunities for cooperation with international partners. This would also allow the Australian Government to articulate Australia’s place in the global space community and reposition Australia as a contributor of space capability, not just a consumer. A national space policy that articulates key priority areas for investment in space capability would provide clear demand signals to industry and drive the development of national space assets that can support Australia and its allies and partners.
Along with detailing investment priorities, such as SSA, the policy could also focus on how Australia can leverage its space activities to bolster its position as a leader in the Indo-Pacific, especially in areas where the Trump administration’s rollback of US priorities has created a vacuum. For example, although the Trump administration recently cut funding for the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, climate monitoring remains a pressing regional priority for the Indo-Pacific. Australia has committed to invest A$448 million over 11 years in the NASA Landsat Next mission, which, once operational, will image the entire Earth every week.27 However, current US budget debates have cast doubt over the future direction of Landsat Next and called into question whether it will be delivered in the expected timeframe.28 This demonstrates the need for Australia to develop its own sovereign space capabilities that can be used in combination with those of international partners, rather than being reliant solely on overseas programs.29
Setting a national policy would further signal to international partners that Australia is committed to space capability development and open to partnerships, notably with its Quad peers. With the exception of Australia, each Quad nation has a dedicated national space strategy and active space funding mechanisms that align with their national priorities. Space is critical to the Quad partnership, vital to its security and strategic aims. This was demonstrated by the introduction of the Quad Space Act30 to the US Congress in 2025 to increase space cooperation among Quad nations.
Conclusion
The space sector in Australia has a A$4.6 billion annual turnover and 17,000 FTE across approximately 620 organisations.31 Space contributes to increased productivity across multiple Australian sectors, including agriculture, weather forecasting, logistics and more.32 When surveyed, Australians consider space to be important to national security and the commercial space sector as a benefit to the economy.33 Given this critical importance, it is vital for the Australian Government to approach the sector as more than an afterthought.
Australia possesses all the capabilities required to be a regional leader in space and to contribute its fair share to the Quad in the space domain. However, to seize this opportunity, the Australian Government should significantly invest in the sector and provide it with a national strategic direction. Doing so provides an opportunity for Australia to work closely with the current US administration on several security and economic priorities and prove its value in the “special friendship” between the two nations. The space domain is only becoming more contested, congested and commercial. Australia risks being left behind unless it is willing to stand on its own two feet in space.