Australia’s Space Command is developing new space control capabilities to strengthen national defense and regional security, according to Army Brig. Gen. Christopher Gardiner, space and cyber attaché at the Australian Embassy in Washington, D.C.
Gardiner made the remarks during an online interview with the U.S. Air & Space Forces Association, noting that the effort aligns with the Australian Department of Defence’s update to the 2024 National Defence Strategy. “In ’24 we had the current release, and we’ll receive our next in ’26. It’s a robust process that examines all the implications and, aligned with the Integrated Investment Program, tells us how we’re getting after that,” he said.
He added that Concept SELENE will guide the expansion of Australia’s military space capabilities. The framework, detailed in The Cove — the Royal Australian Army’s professional development journal — seeks to “enable freedom of action by temporally assuring access and disrupting or denying an adversary’s use of the space domain, as required.” It also envisions signals personnel” contributing to space order of battle development, signal propagation analysis and cross-domain targeting effects planning.”
Gardiner said Space Command’s other focus areas include satellite communications, space domain awareness, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. In November 2024, the Defence Department committed $5.9 billion to $7.9 billion over the next decade to advance the nation’s military space initiatives.