European Space Agency Unveils New Space Tracking Station north of Perth

The European Space Agency has unveiled a new space tracking station in New Norcia, just north of Perth.

The changes to ESA’s WA hub is being celebrated with a social media driven event #SocialSpaceWA

2day, technologies have changed immensely, but motivations remain: What's our role in the #universe? #SocialSpaceWA pic.twitter.com/uObYcoOioy

— SocialSpace (@social4space) February 10, 2016

#WolfeCreek isn't a scary place. It's quite beautiful and culturally significant! #SocialSpaceWA pic.twitter.com/Aan0UtlFGk

— Taraustralis (@Taraustralis) February 10, 2016

The new tracking station will help the European Space Agency’s space program as rockets are launched from the Indian Ocean.

The new dish, at just 4.5 m across, will lock onto and track new satellites during the critical initial orbits up to roughly 100 000 km out.

In addition to satellites, the new antenna can also track rockets, including Ariane 5, Vega and Soyuz.

The current systems in place have become increasingly untenable, through Perth’s urban sprawl and radio interference from TV broadcasts.

The upgrade ensures that ESA’s Estrack tracking network can continue providing crucial satellite services along the most-used trajectories.

The European Space Agency is made up of 22-member nations and is active in deep space exploration, including landing probes on comets in the solar system and missions to the planets.

ESA’s Rosetta mission was the most famous, the first space mission to land on a comet.

#WOW. These missions are pretty incredible #Rosetta. #SocialSpaceWA LANDING ON A COMET! ???

— Taraustralis (@Taraustralis) February 10, 2016

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