Seven out of 10 primary school kids in Australia say they would go to space if they could — and 2026 Australian of the Year Katherine Bennell-Pegg is inspiring proof that such dreams can become reality.
Bennell-Pegg is the first Australian woman to qualify as an astronaut, graduating from the European Space Agency’s training program in 2024.
Unlike previous Australian astronauts who flew for other nations (such as South Australian-born Andy Thomas, who flew for NASA), she is the first to represent Australia directly.
While space exploration is broadening and becoming more mainstream, with celebrities such as Katy Perry taking 10-minute flights, Bennell-Pegg said space tourism is quite different from what government astronauts do.
“I think the closest analogy is Antarctica. When we go to Antarctica, there’s people that represent their country on expeditions, and there’s tourists on cruise ships that rarely interact,” she said.
“One doesn’t take anything away from the other. I think one of the challenges is when people don’t see the difference.
“People can misinterpret space as being frivolous, whereas in fact, space is a place that we use to support us here on Earth . . . you’re going up there to do that cutting edge work.”
She said the recent Artemis II mission, the first crewed mission to orbit the moon in more than 50 years, revealed the depth of Australia’s capabilities in the future of space exploration.
“We can now go outside and look up at the moon, and know that we can send humans out there to do unique science you can’t do on Earth, and return them safely,” she said.
“(Australia) supported Artemis II just like we supported Apollo, with critical communications and tracking. For future Artemis missions, we’re also sending payloads up there, a 20kg lunar ‘roo-ver’ rover and in 2030, we’re sending plants to the surface of the moon.”
Bennell-Pegg, who will be in Perth this month for a leadership breakfast with The Nightly Live, said WA can play a huge role in the future of space studies, with the State’s resources sector and unique geography offering key learning opportunities.
“WA is punching above its weight, not just within Australia but globally in what it’s bringing and what it can bring to space,” she said.
“What we can do in remote WA in the Pilbara, operating complex machinery with complex autonomous systems remotely around people, we haven’t cracked that for space yet — we have a lot of capability in field robotics in WA.
“It’s a virtuous innovation cycle. We use the best of our non-space industries and apply it to space — we’re not going to try and be like the US or NASA, but we’re focusing on playing to our strengths.”
People rely on space for everyday activities, including climate observations from international satellites, banking systems, supporting first responders, mapping bushfires, and even tapping their card to buy a coffee.
This work is also hugely beneficial for the local economy, with the expected global space economy forecast to triple by 2035.
“Our Australian space agency programs in exploration supporting Artemis are returning $7 for every $1 we’re investing in it, so it’s an economic opportunity as well as inspiring science,” she said.
“If you put the word space in front of a job, that job probably exists or could exist.
“We need scientists and engineers but we also need space tradies, space lawyers, space entrepreneurs, space policymakers, space communicators and artists and historians.”
Despite declining participation rates in STEM studies, especially among girls, Bennell-Pegg is hopeful recent strides taken in space exploration will encourage future generations to join the industry.
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