Melissa Price (Durack, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to acknowledge the government's recent announcement of the creation of a national space agency. Australians have a long history as explorers and adventurers, and this announcement fits perfectly with that proud tradition. Looking around Australia, I believe there is no place better suited for the future Australian space agency than my electorate of Durack. You would be hard pressed to find any region in Australia with such a high concentration of satellite ground stations or with as much expertise in the field as is found in the mid-west. We've demonstrated that we have the capacity to support this industry, and we also have the rolled-gold NBN in Geraldton to support such an agency. We also have the Square Kilometre Array project in the Murchison, which is a next-gen mega-telescope.

Within the mid-west we have the Universal Space Network ground station, the European Space Agency Deep Space Earth Station, the Swedish Space Corporation Ground Station and the Australian Defence Space Communication Station. Neil Armstrong's first steps on the moon were relayed through the tracking station in Carnarvon in my electorate, which is still part of the Birmingham Solar Oscillations Network. The Australian space agency is indeed an exciting step forward for our nation, and I hope Durack will expand its important role in all things space.

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