US, Australia to launch second joint spy satellite from site in New Zealand

Some in the space industry bewildered by Australia’s lack of fanfare about the launch of the satellites, which will be used to collect intelligence for allied nations. 

A second spy satellite built by Australia and the United States is scheduled for liftoff on Tuesday from a launch site in New Zealand, The Guardian reports. 

The first of the two satellites, which will be used to collect intelligence for the allied nations, launched two weeks ago.

US spy agency, the National Reconnaissance Office, has been celebrating the “Antipodean Adventure”, which features a crocodile, a rocket and an eagle on its logo.

Malcolm Davis, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s senior analyst and resident space expert, said there is a “very different culture” in the US military, which actively promotes its work, and the Australian military, which is “closed off”.

“It’s not just these particular satellites, it’s an attitude within Defence that they’re very closed off,” he said.

“The Americans are very forward. You only need to look at how they support movies like Top Gun: Maverick. It’s a very different culture, and it’s a frustrating one down here.”

The first satellite, NROL-162, features a frill-necked lizard patch. “The frilled-neck lizard is a reptile primarily located in northern Australia and much like the lizard, it represents the small, agile nature of the payload to be launched,” the NRO said.

The second, NROL-199, has a dingo: “It represents a small to medium-sized canine built for speed, agility, and stamina.” Its logo says ad astra per aspera: “Through hardships to the stars.”

New Zealand’s Rocket Lab is providing the rockets to deliver the classified payloads into orbit from the launch site on the Māhia Peninsula.

The NRO’s mission is to “produce intelligence products” for policymakers and “warfighters” as well as civilian use.