A special moment for the space industry of the island-continent.

NASA's first space flight from a commercial site outside the United States took off this Sunday evening from the Australian Outback.

This is the first of three flights planned in total from the Arnhem Space Center (northern Australia).

The rocket, which carries a small space telescope described as a "mini Hubble", took off up to 350 km altitude in the starry night.

"This is a historic moment for us as a company in particular, but it's also historic for Australia," Equatorial Launch Australia CEO Michael Jones said before liftoff.

His company owns and operates the launch site located in the far north of the island.

Michael Jones described Sunday's liftoff as the Australian space industry's "coming out" and hailed the chance to work with NASA.

TODAY is the day we conduct Australia's first ever commercial space launch with@NASA



Head to the link below to watch the live stream from approx 10pm AEST tonight so you can see all the action in real time https://t.co/XXBzf6SlZn pic .twitter.com/cpSUbtJPl6


– Equatorial Launch Australia (@ela_space) June 26, 2022

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The perspective from the south

After several delays due to rain and wind, the suborbital sounding rocket was able to leave to study the X-rays emanating from the stars Alpha Centauri A and B, which together form a binary star.

After reaching its peak, the rocket payload must record data on the binary system before descending back to earth using a parachute.

According to NASA, this launch offers a unique insight into other solar systems and offers new opportunities for scientists.

“We look forward to being able to launch important science missions from the southern hemisphere and observe targets that we cannot see from the United States,” said Nicky Fox, director of NASA's heliophysics department. presenting the mission to Washington.

Michael Jones explained that the unique location had complicated the preparations: the rockets have to be brought from Darwin to the site – 28 hours by road – and it took years of work to obtain all the official authorizations.

RDV July 4

The next launch is scheduled for July 4, leaving little time for the team – time to “dusting ourselves off, taking a day off, and then getting back to it,” according to the executive.

It is the first NASA rocket to take off from Australia since 1995. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has hailed the start of a "new era" for his country's space industry.

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