The inaugural rocket launch to space from the Koonibba Test Range is scheduled for next year
Southern Launch has announced plans to launch the first rocket out of the Koonibba Test Range to reach space next year. This mission-with Reaction Dynamics-sitting beneath it in Western Australia-aims for an altitude of 125 kilometers above Earth's surface. If it is successful, it will be a historic milestone for South Australia's space industry, the first rocket to officially break into space from Koonibba.
Since its first launch in 2020, the Koonibba Test Range, stretching over 41,000 square kilometers, has borne witness to four rocket launches thus far, and some more are lined up for future shots. For the next mission, Southern Launch will make a maiden flight of the 7.3-meter Aurora rocket, using hybrid rocket technology. "That would be the first time we have been able to get that high out of Koonibba," said Amy Featherston, the communications manager at Southern Launch, unable to contain her excitement about the prospect of reaching the 100-kilometer boundary that qualifies as space.
Another is approaching the end of that process, the Whalers Way Orbital Complex proposal, 400kms south of Koonibba near Port Lincoln. That one has been vigorously opposed by residents and conservation groups. Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek is currently assessing the proposal's environmental impacts, notably on threatened and migratory species. She will determine whether that passes the federal test. Then Nick Champion, state Planning Minister, will also need to approve that decision. A timeline for his decision remains unspecified.
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