The satellites, which are set to launch in 2031, aim to capture images at a super-high resolution that will enable governments and organisations to better manage crops, enhance urban environments, and improve responses to natural disasters.
The deal was signed by Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at a ministerial communiqué in Washington.
It comes after the federal government quietly announced in March that it would join the initiative, which it said would give Australia access to “next-generation” data. Australia is currently reliant on international Earth observation satellites after it controversially shelved plans to create its own last year.
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Already, the federal government’s 2024–25 budget has committed $207.4 million over the next four years to Landsat, with a further $38.2 million earmarked each year thereafter.
As part of the deal, Geoscience Australia will deliver an upgraded ground station in Alice Springs along with advanced spatial data processing and analytics capabilities.
“The partnership will extend free and open access to Landsat Next data to users in Australia and throughout the Indo-Pacific region,” said the Department of Industry, Science and Resources in a statement.
“This will support evidence-based decision-making across the region, particularly in relation to climate change adaptation planning and disaster management activities.”
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The Landsat news significantly follows the Labor government’s decision to scrap the $1.2 billion National Space Mission for Earth Observation (NSMEO) that was announced by the previous administration.
The NSMEO announcement led to huge criticism from the sector, with many industry figures accusing Labor of giving up on space.
Swinburne University professor Alan Duffy, for example, argued government cuts were having a “chilling factor”, while Equatorial Launch Australia chief executive officer Michael Jones went further, accusing space of now being a low priority for the new government.
“Call it what it is: the lack of federal government support with the change in government makes me nervous, and it makes the job really hard,” he said at last year’s Australian Space Summit.
Adam Thorn
Adam is a journalist who has worked for more than 40 prestigious media brands in the UK and Australia. Since 2005, his varied career has included stints as a reporter, copy editor, feature writer and editor for publications as diverse as Fleet Street newspaper The Sunday Times, fashion bible Jones, media and marketing website Mumbrella as well as lifestyle magazines such as GQ, Woman’s Weekly, Men’s Health and Loaded. He joined Momentum Media in early 2020 and currently writes for Australian Aviation and World of Aviation.
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