Whether you’re tapping your phone to pay for coffee, checking the weather before heading out, booking a rideshare, or navigating to your next meeting, satellites are quietly powering it all.

Beyond convenience, satellite services play a critical role in Australia’s disaster response, from tracking bushfires and floods to aiding cyclone relief.

Farmers depend on satellite data to manage crops and soil, while climate scientists rely on it to monitor global warming. The military, too, counts on satellite intelligence for modern defence operations.

But here’s the catch: almost none of those satellites belong to Australia.

Despite how embedded satellite technology is in our everyday lives and national infrastructure, Australia remains overwhelmingly dependent on foreign-owned and operated systems—mostly from the US, Europe, and Japan.

Critical, but not ours

Since 2022, the Australian government has officially recognised space technology as “critical infrastructure.”

That means if foreign satellites were suddenly taken offline—whether due to conflict, cyberattacks, or natural disasters—the impact on national security, the economy, and even public safety could be devastating.

Take GPS, for instance. It’s not Australian. It’s owned and controlled by the United States government. If access were cut, even temporarily, it could ripple through our telecommunications networks and cripple vital services.

The 2024 National Defence Strategy rightly states that space capabilities are “equally as important as the maritime, land and air domains.” Yet despite this recognition, Australia continues to act more like a customer of foreign space infrastructure than an active stakeholder.

Dependency is a risk—especially now

Most of the satellite data that supports Australia’s farming, banking, logistics, climate monitoring and emergency response comes from our global partners. But when those countries face their own crises, we could find ourselves cut off.

It’s already happened. In 2023, a UK satellite outage caused serious disruption to Australian and New Zealand farmers. And during the Sea of Japan earthquake in early 2024, global satellite prioritisation shifted—reminding us that when other nations are forced to look inward, we may be left out.

And with geopolitical uncertainty growing—including questions about the future of Australia’s strategic alignment with the US—this dependency looks more like a national security liability than a sustainable strategy.

What’s our space plan?

While many of our international partners have laid out national space policies and committed to building sovereign capabilities, Australia still lacks a clear vision. A public survey by the Australian Centre for Space Governance last year revealed that most Australians don’t even know what we want out of space.

That’s not just a branding problem—it’s a strategic blind spot.

According to researchers at the Centre, it’s time for Australia to define its role in the space age. That means investing in our own satellites, supporting regional partnerships, and focusing on practical outcomes—like better climate resilience, agricultural data, and rural connectivity.

Whether it’s for national security, economic stability, or simply making sure we can keep paying for coffee with our phones, the message is clear: Australia can’t afford to keep outsourcing space.

Space Still Remains Afterthought

Despite how deeply satellite technology is embedded in our daily lives and national operations, inside the halls of government, space still remains an afterthought.

Right now, decisions about satellite strategy are largely siloed—left to a handful of experts behind closed doors. But experts say it’s time for a major shift: space needs to be “mainstreamed” across all levels of government.

Great at the ground game, missing the sky

It’s not that Australia doesn’t know how to handle space infrastructure—we’re world-class when it comes to the ground segment. From satellite dishes to data processing, we punch above our weight.

Take, for example, the satellite facility in Alice Springs, operated by Geoscience Australia in partnership with the Indigenous-owned Centre for Appropriate Technology. It’s a shining example of how ground-based systems can be done right.

Australia has become the digital equivalent of a renter in orbit—dependent on international landlords for everything from Earth observation to communications.

Number of Australian-Owned Satellite Launches / Per Year

Australia has launched a total of 49 satellites, with this graph showing the number of launches of Australian-owned satellites in years that satellite launches occurred. Of all the years where launches occurred, an average of 2.2 satellites were launched.

Scrapped satellites and missed opportunities

In 2023, the federal government quietly axed a billion-dollar project that would’ve given Australia four of its own Earth-observation satellites—citing budget pressures.

In 2024, another ambitious $7 billion plan for a military-grade satellite communications system met the same fate. Both were scrapped before they ever left the launch pad.

Now, with a new term of government underway and a new minister for industry and science, Tim Ayres, there’s a chance these space ambitions could be revived.

Ayres has already voiced strong support for a “Future Made in Australia” vision—something that aligns perfectly with building homegrown space capability. But this time around, the space sector will have to do more than build rockets and write policy papers.

It needs to win hearts and minds—and explain to both politicians and the public why satellites aren’t just high-tech toys, but critical national assets tied directly to our economy and future resilience.