Optus to Launch Australian-Made Satellite to Compete With Musk’s Starlink

The satellite will boost space domain awareness by tracking objects in orbit, as satellite numbers climb past 12,000 and continue to grow.

General view of an Optus store in Sydney, Australia, on Sept. 22, 2022. AAP Image/Bianca De Marchi

Australia is set to launch its own low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite in 2028 through a new project led by Optus, in collaboration with the iLAuNCH Trailblazer program, HEO, Inovor Technologies, and the Defence Science and Technology Group.

The satellite will be constructed in Adelaide by Inovor at Lot Fourteen and operated from Optus’ Belrose Space Operations Centre in Sydney.