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The companies have partnered to bolster their presence in the Australian space industry.
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Saber Astronautics has signed a teaming agreement with Axiom Space aimed at establishing an Australian presence on the International Space Station (ISS).
As part of the collaboration, Saber Astronautics will be tasked with developing the first formal program to facilitate access to the ISS’ orbiting microgravity laboratory by leveraging Axiom Space’s resources.
The company also aims to develop a new generation of space products for human health, materials, electronics and cleantech, among other uses.
The program seeks direct industrial involvement, with flight crews to include people selected from the Australian public.
“What we would like to do is open the benefits for broader industrial use by conventional industry,” Saber’s CEO Dr Jason Held said.
The collaboration follows NASA’s selection of Axiom to add a series of its privately developed modules to the ISS from late 2024, before detaching and becoming a free-flying station.
NASA and Axiom Space also signed an order for the first private astronaut mission to ISS in February 2022, with Axiom planning multiple missions as precursor to its station construction.
This is the latest of several endeavours pursued by Saber Astronautics, with the company currently owning and operating the Responsive Space Operations Centre (RSOC) based in Adelaide and Colorado.
Saber is now expected to engage Australian companies in a series of workshops in each state, in coordination with local governments.
Selected stakeholders will be responsible for developing the requirements and resources required for the flights.
“With Axiom we now have a way to develop an Australian astronaut program and significant industry advantages at the same time,” Dr Held added.
The workshops are scheduled to commence at the end of the year, in coordination with the RSOC program.
[Related: USAF awards contract to Saber Astronautics for threat detection software]
