SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
from the is-anybody-staying-on-earth? dept.
Arthur T Knackerbracket has processed the following story:
More funding will be provided to organisations focusing on mission development activities for current and existing space projects under Australia's Moon to Mars initiative.
More federal government grants for space technology initiatives are on the way, according to Minister for Science and Technology Melissa Price, who on Tuesday announced a second round of grants for the Demonstrator Program under the Moon to Mars initiative.
The Demonstrator Program provides funding to Australian industry and research institutions focusing on mission development activities for current and existing space projects. The objectives of the program are to support Australia's ambitions to join NASA's endeavour to go to the Moon and then Mars and accelerate the growth of Australia's space industry.
For this round of grants, organisations will be able to apply for "mission grants" of between AU$750,000 and AU$10 million from a total AU$41 million grant pool.
[...] Beyond the Demonstrator Program, the Moon to Mars initiative also recently launched its flagship Trailblazer program, which entails the Australian government working with NASA to create an Australian-built semi-autonomous rover that will be used in future missions to the moon and Mars.
The federal government said last month that the Trailblazer rover is expected to be capable of operating on the moon, provide lunar regolith to a NASA payload with a "high level of autonomy", and weigh 20kg or less. It also said at the time that the rover could be launched into space as early as 2026.
(Score: 4, Informative) by MostCynical on Wednesday December 01 2021, @08:53PM (2 children)
Net Federal debt is expected to be $729 billion—or 34.2% of GDP—at 30 June 2022 and peak at $981 billion or 40.9% of GDP in 2024–25 (Table 11.4, p. 364–5). Net debt is then projected to fall over the medium term to 37% of GDP at 30 June 2032 (p. 203).
Commonwealth debt - Parliament of Australia [aph.gov.au]
$41 million.. almost exactly what was taken out of Australia's Foreign Aid Budget ($44 million) [aph.gov.au]
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 02 2021, @01:49PM (1 child)
Why are we spending money on this while so badly in debt?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 02 2021, @02:04PM
It's like buying a lottery ticket, one of those projects could become hugely successful and bring high-skilled jobs