Australia has sent the European Space Agency a final bid to fly Australian of the Year Katherine Bennell-Pegg to the International Space Station, ABC News reported.
Science Minister Tim Ayres announced the bid on Friday morning, 23 October, according to the ABC. The federal government’s offer is a counteroffer to an ESA proposal to send Ms Bennell-Pegg to space.
“We have submitted a final bid to our friends in the European Space Agency,” Mr Ayres said.
Under the bid, she would become the first person to formally represent Australia in a space agency mission, the ABC reported. The mission is slated for 2028, according to The Guardian.
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The Price of a Seat
ESA originally offered Australia a mission seat at the beginning of 2026, for a reported cost of $100 million, the ABC reported.
The federal government did not give details of how much it committed in its final bid, according to the ABC.
“It does require careful fiscal management and making sure that we are balancing the fiscal pressures appropriately,” Mr Ayres said, the ABC reported.
Who Is Backing It
The minister’s office said philanthropists had committed over $6 million in cash, plus in-kind support, the ABC reported. The office said there was also some indicative support from some state governments.
South Australia is the only state or territory to have publicly confirmed financial support, according to the ABC. The industry-led “flyKatherine” campaign reportedly reached $25 million in the week of the announcement.
Dick Smith and Jim Whalley have each pledged $1m, The Guardian reported.
“South Australia stands ready to partner with the commonwealth in what should be a national endeavour,” SA Premier Peter Malinauskas said, according to The Guardian.
According to The Guardian, Darin Lovett, chair of the Space Industry Association of Australia, said: “For around $100m, less than the price of a single coffee for every Australian adult, this is not a ticket to space. It is a down payment on Australia’s future in one of the defining industries of this century.”
The Guardian also quoted Richard de Grijs, of Macquarie University: “It’s a lot of money, but on the other hand, it might actually lead to returns that are way more than the estimated number.”
Training and Precedent
Ms Bennell-Pegg is director of space technology at the Australian Space Agency, The Guardian reported.
She completed basic astronaut training with ESA in 2024, according to the ABC. The Australian Space Agency paid $466,000 for that training at the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, The Guardian reported.
If ESA agrees to the bid, she must train at ESA’s astronaut centre in Cologne, Germany, and at NASA facilities in the United States, the ABC reported.
Previous Australians either flew with private companies or took US citizenship to fly with NASA, according to the ABC. Andy Thomas and Paul Scully-Power flew as US citizens on NASA missions, The Guardian reported.
In May, the Australian Space Agency said it had entered “treaty-level discussions” with ESA, according to The Guardian. An Australian-built lunar rover, Roo-ver, is due to go to the Moon on a NASA mission in 2030, the paper reported.
More space and science coverage is in prw’s Technology archive.
A Seat Still to Be Agreed
The decision rests with ESA. A government spokesperson told the ABC a response was expected by the end of the year.
Sources: ABC News, “Federal government makes offer to send Australian of the Year to space”, 23 October 2026 (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-10-23/australia-makes-offer-to-send-australian-of-the-year-to-space/107300194); The Guardian, “Australia offers astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg for space mission to International Space Station”, 23 October 2026 (https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/oct/23/australian-astronaut-katherine-bennell-pegg-2028-space-mission)
Photo: Yu Chu Chin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Katherine Bennell-Pegg speaking at the Australian Space Discovery Centre’s Space Day Out on 19 July 2026.
