I've been working on a space project here at the University of New South Wales. It's very cool: the satellite would carry a huge radar which would monitor Australia's natural resources. Moisture in soils, growth of trees, damage caused by fires and flooding--all would be measured more often and more accurately by this unique system. We are doing a very preliminary design, but with a few years of dedicated effort, it could be ready to fly.
Sadly, the students keep asking me: "Where can I do such projects after I graduate?" You see, Australia has no aerospace industry. Many of Australia's universities have programs in aerospace engineering, which includes both the "air" and "space" systems. But no companies here build any. Students come to me to ask what's available in the US. Answer: lots. It's a little tricky if you're not a US citizen, because a lot of US aerospace work is defense-related, but there are many, many high-tech opportunities. One recent PhD here found a cutting-edge job, following my suggestion, with a major heavy equipment manufacturer in the US. That company wants to automate its huge vehicles; the PhD is an expert in controlling vehicles without drivers.
To give these bright students a future in Australia, one would like to see some small companies starting up in the space business. Many of us feel that an Australian space industry wouldn't just be an indulgence for the sake of coolness--rather, it could be the centerpiece of a new high-tech economy. Because right now, the Australian economy is anything but high-tech: it's mining, agriculture and tourism.
I've written an article describing how a space industry, composed primarily of small businesses, would benefit Australia, particularly in increasing ties with Asia. The article is currently with the editor of a major Australian news organization; we'll see how that goes. I'll post a link if it's published, and I'll post the article if it's not. Government seed funding of a few small companies making space hardware, software and even complete small spacecraft would pay off many times.
Unfortunately, starting small companies here is not like starting them in Silicon Valley. The laws, the bureaucracy, and even the social construct get in the way. One Australian, a CEO of a successful US startup, gave this excellent summary of the problems facing high-tech startups in Oz. It's a 7-minute video well worth watching.
Like that CEO did 12 years ago, a new Aussie startup venture is leaving the country for Silicon Valley . And it's more than just the lack of venture capital: the social construct here disparages success, considering it "reaching too high". They call it the "tall poppy syndrome" and every Aussie I've talked to about it agrees that it's real.
Let me be clear, too, that Australia does not lack talent. Australia is a
world leader in astronomy, for example, including many skills that
could help bootstrap a space business. Some Aussie organizations are
also doing cutting-edge data processing of very large datasets--which will become ever more important around the world.
Yet, ironically, there is another social problem that I have been told about repeatedly: students simply can't visualize what a high-tech career would even look like. University professors are paid less than plumbers, and are less respected in Aussie society. Young people don't have a vision that motivates them to pursue careers in technology.
The Sydney Morning Herald has a whole series of recent articles about the obstacles to entrepreneurship, even one about tall poppies . I hope that things change quickly, before the bright students with whom I work today decide they have to leave too, and the next generation all becomes plumbers.
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