International Space Centre

Great to see the Automation and Robotics’ team’s autonomous bus around campus today, shuffling our students around! This driverless bus has a twin in Eglington as part of the local public transport system.

Leader of the Node Professor Thomas Bräunl explains “We acquired the shuttle bus as a shell without any software, and engineering students added hardware extensions and a full software stack to operate the vehicle.”

WA has a long history in automation, remote ops and robotics - skills that are immediately transferable to the space sector. Spacecraft can be a long way away…

The University of Western Australia

"Leading the push for Bennell-Pegg’s flight is the International Space Centre at The University of Western Australia, backed by a group of universities, industry bodies, chief scientists, STEM organisations, and senior political figures who have all submitted nearly 80 letters of support to the PM and Cabinet."

Read more at https://www.uwa.edu.au/news/article/2026/february/astronaut-mission-could-anchor-australias-place-in-900bn-global-space-market

Australia has about four weeks to secure a deal sending astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg to space or risk missing a once-in-a-generation opportunity that could inspire the next wave of STEM students. 🧑‍🚀 READ MORE: https://bit.ly/4aCVKRO

📢 Share with students you know entering Year 11 in 2026.📢

Don't forget to submit your applications for Space Boot Camp! Applications close soon, and limited spots available.

Two days of hands-on missions, real science experiments, and behind-the-scenes access to world-class space researchers and facilites. 🔭✨

🛰️ Learn from scientists and engineers shaping Australia’s space future.
👩‍🚀 Visit ESA - European Space Agency's Deep Space Network in New Norcia.
💫 Discover study and career pathways that can take you from high school to the stars.
🔭 Explore the Zadko Observatory and the ARC Centre of Excellence for Gravitational Wave Discovery Node on site.

Thanks to the Fogarty Foundation for their continued support of STEM education by offering scholarships to cover all Fogarty EDvance schools (past & present) as well as rural regional and remote schools or schools with a low ICSEA.

📅 When: 29-30 January, 2026
💵 $220 inc GST (scholarships available)
📍 Where: The University of Western Australia
🎟️ Places are extremely limited (40 spots only) !
👉 https://internationalspacecentre.org/space-boot-camp

The University of Western Australia UWA Students Australian Space Agency Australian Women Pilots' Association Homeschool Western Australia ARC Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space ICRAR

Shout out to our McCusker Centre for Citizenship intern Luke Waters who did a fabulous job filming one of his busy days at the ISC! Did you know there are 21 different Nodes of research in space at The University of Western Australia and over 200 researchers who are members of the ISC?

Shawna Pandya Australian Space Agency ARC Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space ICRAR Teranet

🚀Did you know that UWA is home to the International Space Centre? Engineering and Mathematical Sciences student, Luke shows us what he gets up to as part of his The McCusker Centre for Citizenship at UWA internship with the International Space Centre.

Did you miss Raising the Bar Perth? Luckily the clever team at The University of Western Australia turned all the talks into podcasts! For those into space science, Dr James Lloyd from the ARC Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space team spoke about "Cosmic Crops - Engineering plants to feed our journey to Mars". 🌿 🌌

Listen here 👉 https://soundcloud.com/raising-the-bar-286698373/cosmic-crops-engineering-plants-to-feed-our-journey-to-mars-by-dr-james-lloyd-10

🪐 Planetary Geoscience Alert!

Comparisons of feldspar crystals from the oldest rocks in Australia with data from lunar anorthosites collected by NASA's Apollo program allowed lead UWA researcher Matilda Boyce and her co-authors to confirm that the Earth and Moon had the same starting composition around 4.5 billion years ago, in a study published in Nature Communications.

“This supports the theory that a planet collided with early Earth and the high-energy impact resulted in the formation of the Moon.”

Read more at 👉 https://www.uwa.edu.au/news/article/2025/november/ancient-rocks-offer-insight-into-origins-of-earth-and-moon

The University of Western Australia The UWA Oceans Institute Australian Space Agency

Ancient rocks offer insight into origins of Earth and Moon Analysis of feldspar crystals within the oldest magmatic rocks in Australia has provided a unique insight into Earth’s ancient mantle and continents, and moon.

Congratulations to Professors Charitha Pattiaratchi, Sascha Schediwy and all of the incredible nominees for your selection as finalists in the 2025 Premier's Science Awards!

Professor Charitha Pattiaratchi is a coastal oceanographer at The University of Western Australia, recognised internationally as a leader in the field. His enduring contributions to WA oceanography are significant and have shaped much of the current knowledge. Using novel techniques including ocean gliders, his major discoveries include dense shelf water transport, tsunami impacts, and the Leeuwin Current system.

Professor Pattiaratchi has advanced fundamental science into practical application through collaborations with government and industry partners, considering sustainable development, research infrastructure, human safety and public outreach. He is an award-winning researcher, a strong mentor to the next generation of researchers and the Leader of our Earth Observation capability.

Professor Sascha Schediwy is an internationally recognised research leader with a demonstrated track record of research excellence spanning the fields of astronomy, space, and national security. He leads the teams that are building the Teranet laser communication ground station network in Western Australia, the laser timing system for Square Kilometre Array radio telescope, and optical technologies that enhance Australia’s national security.

He holds a prestigious Australian Research Council Mid-Career Industry Fellowship, and he has previously won both the Australian Space Awards ‘Academic of the Year’ and ‘Excellence Award’ – the highest individual award. Sascha is the Leader of our Laser Communications and Timing Capability.

ICRAR The University of Western Australia Australian Space Agency

What do we know about the space debris found 30km east of Newman this weekend? Our Space Situational Awareness team at the International Space Centre have pin-pointed the origin of this fourth-stage rocket booster from a Chinese company, launched September last year. The rocket was carrying eight satellites, all still in sun-synchronous orbit (permanently facing the sun-exposed side of the Earth).

This was the eighth launch of this rocket so far - and only two months ago it had an uncontrolled reentry over Argentina.

Hear more from Associate Professor David Coward and PhD student Dorota Mieczkowska on 9 News Perth, ABC Australia tonight and The West Australian tomorrow.

The University of Western Australia

👀 Come see ARC Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space's Dr James Lloyd present...

🌿Cosmic crops: engineering plants to feed our journey to Mars 🪐 https://www.rtbevent.com/james-lloyd

🌱🚀Hear how James' team is trying to make plants that can support human life as we venture forth to Mars. Being so far away from Earth, astronauts can’t rely on resupply from home, so must be able to produce enough food for exploration and will also need medicines and construction materials to aid them. Discover how plants are being engineered to meet the needs of astronauts for deep space exploration. And, if we can get plants to grow on Mars, imagine how successful we will be with plants in other harsh environments, such as Western Australia!

🍻About Raising the Bar Event: For curious minds and lifelong learners - we’re here for those hungry for innovation and inspiration. We’re here to make knowledge accessible outside of the traditional classroom and transform our city’s popular culture. We’re Raising the Bar.

The University of Western Australia