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CANBERRA, Australia – NASA will launch a research rocket from far northern Australia this month in the agency’s first blast from a commercial spaceport outside of the United States.
NASA and the Australian Equatorial Launch Australia, owner of the launch pad, said it will launch from the Arnhem Space Center on June 26, July 4 and July 12, near the mining town of Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory.
The launch site was chosen because it is in the Southern Hemisphere and close to the equator.
“This commercial launch range in Australia opens up new access to the Southern Hemisphere’s night sky, expanding the possibilities for future science missions,” Thomas Zurbuchen, deputy director of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, said in a statement.
The 12.2 meters (40 feet), 2,200 kilograms (4,900 pounds), Canadian-designed Black Brant IX rockets would focus on the Alpha Centauri A and B star systems. A third mission would study X-rays emitted from the interstellar medium – gas clouds and particles in the space between stars.
Nicky Fox, director of NASA’s Heliophysics Division, said launches longer than 300 kilometers (186 miles) into space “will allow us to explore how the light of a star can affect, among other things, the habitability of a planet.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has welcomed NASA’s first rocket launch in Australia since 1995. The launch site was then a military rocket range near Woomera in the state of South Australia.
“This is a really exciting project. It’s not just about self-launching the rocket, it’s also about sending a message to young Australians and indeed Australians of all ages considering retraining for their future careers, how important science is,” said Albanese.
“We really want the next generation to look at STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) as part of Australia’s future and that’s why it’s an important project,” said Albanese.
Michael Jones, Chief Executive Officer and Group CEO of Equatorial Launch Australia, said that while NASA is the company’s first client, further commercial talks are underway with nine rocket companies.
It expected at least two more launches from the space center this year, and more than 50 launches per year within a few years.
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