Indigenous space academy partners with NASA through Australian Space Agency

Five successful Indigenous applicants will travel to California for a 10-week summer internship with NASA, as part of a new Australian Space Agency partnership.

An Indigenous space academy run through the Australian Space Agency has partnered with NASA, propelling students from across the country to take on an internship program in the United States.

The National Indigenous Space Academy (NISA) will see up to five students studying in STEM fields travel to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California for a 10-week summer internship.

On Tuesday at the Adelaide-based Australian Space Agency, NASA chief Bill Nelson said the journey “out into the cosmos” was for all humanity.

NASA chief Bill Nelson with aero-engineering student Justyce Manton and Warriappendi school student Sylvia Abdulla, at the announcement of a new internship program to propel the ambitions of Indigenous Australians at the Australian Space Discovery Centre. Picture: Emma Brasier

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson at a press conference to announce a new internship program to propel the ambitions of Indigenous Australians at the Australian Space Discovery Centre. Picture: Emma Brasier

“We announce a partnership today between the National Indigenous Space Academy, the Australian Space Agency and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory that will create internship opportunities,” he said.

“I think there are great opportunities for Australia in co-operation as a partner with the US and other international partners and we have many.

“It demonstrates something powerful to Indigenous Australian students and students throughout the world because they, we all belong to the Artemis generation.”

One of the students who will be applying for the summer internship program is Eora and Wiradjuri woman, Justyce Manton.

Eora and Wiradjuri woman Justyce Manton hopes to experience the culture at NASA while sharing her own.

Ms Manton is currently in her second year of mechanical engineering and majoring in aerospace at the University of Adelaide.

She said she hoped to experience the culture at NASA while sharing her own.

“I think it’s a great opportunity and stepping stone for a voice, especially for Indigenous people and to be able to see what we can bring to the table,” she said.

“My ultimate goal is that if I’m feeling brave enough, I would love to be an astronaut, but at the end of the day, I’m content being in the space defence industry working on fascinating projects.

“I love the development of machine learning in AI and algorithms and I think we have amazing capabilities in Australia to develop them.”

NASA’s Artemis program is expected to land humans on the moon by 2026, and Mr Nelson said the students were a part of the “Artemis Generation”.

Mr Nelson said “NASA should fly an Australian astronaut” and that he was heading to Canberra on Tuesday to speak to the Deputy Prime Minister about it.

One such person from Adelaide is Katherine Bennell, who made history earlier this month by becoming the first Australian woman to be internationally trained as an astronaut.

Astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg with her daughters Hazel, 4, and Clara, 6, and husband Campbell Pegg, at Lot 14. Picture: Mark Brake

She is currently undergoing intensive training at the European Space Agency

Mr Nelson said it was “yet to be determined” but the goal was to establish a NASA office in Australia to build on their international partnership.

“We have an international partnership going on and I want to include Australia,” he said.

“We have 15 nations that are participating with guys that have helped build the International Space Station.

“We‘re going to the moon and then onto Mars with an international mission.

“I think that NASA should fly an Australian astronaut. I’ll be going to Canberra this afternoon and Pam (Melroy) and I will be meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister and I hope if he’s back from the US, the Prime Minister and we’ll be advocating exactly that.”

NISA is being delivered by Monash University and will send students to California as early as the state’s next summer.

Indigenous students studying in STEM are eligible from all Australian universities.

Originally published as Indigenous space academy partners with NASA through Australian Space Agency