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It's Official, Australia Needs a Space Agency

Posted by kdawson on from the bird-on-the-barbie dept.

Dante_J writes "In the final report published by the Australian Senate inquiry into 'The Current State of Australia's Space Science & Industry Sector' entitled 'Lost in Space? Setting a new direction for Australia's space science and industry sector,' it calls for the formation of a 'Space Industry Advisory Council' to oversee the creation of a fully-fledged Australian Space Agency. Of the top 20 GDP nations, Australia is the only one without a Space Agency, which impacts on many aspects of ordinary life, not to mention Research and Engineering endeavors. Every satellite operated by Australia is owned by another party and the costs of this alone are comparable to that of a Space Agency. The report is a tidy piece that drew upon submissions form Andy Thomas, and an impressive collection of Australian Academics and Space Science entities frustrated by successive generations of government apathy. While this report is welcome, lethargic Government action in a climate of competing concerns is not expected to stem the flow of Space Science brain drain out of Australia any time soon."

5 of 199 comments (clear)

  1. It needs a clue first by EdIII · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Maybe it should try to concentrate on getting rid of some of the laws that take away freedoms in that country. Stop trying to filter the Internet into the ground. I dunno, how bout generally pulling it's head out of its ass.

    I am speaking to the politicians of course, not the regular people. How can a government be so forward thinking as the people in this article desire it to be, when it so backwards thinking about the rest of it's policies?

    Of course, what the hell am I talking about. I live in America, the land of the free and the home of the brave! We have *none* of those same problems.

    The only reason NASA exists in my country is because it ALREADY EXISTS. If you have to convince politicians to fund it today, nothing would ever get done. It took a cold war, a charismatic President, and national pride to get our asses into space.

    1. Re:It needs a clue first by EdIII · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Privacy in general is a dying concept. People just don't care about it anymore.

      That's just untrue. People don't understand it. Privacy to most people is still quite physical.

      If I go to pee in my bathroom can somebody see me? No? Then I have privacy.

      Do I have blinds and/or curtains on my windows? Yes? Than I have privacy.

      The average person cannot understand, visualize, and basically even begin to comprehend that there is another dimension of reality we have created called cyberspace. That information flows back and forth in this dimension and has very real effects and serious consequences in our real world, "meatspace". This is not hyperbole. It is an absolute fact of our existence right now.

      Unless you have experienced it directly, or have a more sophisticated understanding of it, you would have a very hard time understanding the interactions between your personal information in cyberspace and the "real world".

      When you do finally explain to this to them, their lack of privacy, and how this lack of privacy can have real negative effects on their lives.... it becomes important to them all of the sudden.

      You need to stop perpetuating this myth that people have an informed decision about privacy and still choose to look at is as antiquated and unimportant. I have met VERY few people that actually feel this way and ALL of them have a VERY sophisticated understanding of it and deliberately choose to live in a world with absolutely no privacy and/or anonymity. They make interesting and intelligent arguments about it's function in a higher society.

      They are the exception. Most people are just ignorant and think "Privacy" is about protecting their naughty bits.

    2. Re:It needs a clue first by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Actually Kevin Rudd's plan to censor the internet is opposed by 80-90% of Australians the polls that I've seen, it's that unpopular. Rudd is quite conservative/religious and even though most Australian's aren't, the small religious population voted for him and he needs to repay the favour, by targetting porn

      Why the religious just leave everyone else the hell alone

  2. The UK govn was very short sighted by Viol8 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I can't remember the exact quote but I think the government at the time saw no future in satellite comms. Another triumph for arts educated politicians with all the technical insight of Mr Bean and the foresight of a comatose goldfish.

  3. Space Industry by Davemania · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Australia needs to expand its high tech industry. Currently we don't have the a internationally competitive aerospace or high-tech industry to support a space program and that's one our big problems. The majority of Australian export are primary goods that is eventually made into something that is sold at significant higher price than what we export because Australia doesn't have a significant industry that can manufacture the goods. I think a major into space industry with home grown technology will do more good than just putting satellites into space and this requires major investment not just at the space program.