Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex
Approved by the Australian Space Agency as Australia’s second space launch facility.
The Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex supports direct ascent trajectories from 55 to 170 degrees including polar, sun-synchronous orbits and 135 degree (equivalent to 45 degree) inclination. Launch customers can access high cadence, direct ascent flight trajectories over the Southern Ocean and Great Australian Bight, maximising spacecraft payload mass and profitability.
The Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex is located on the tip of the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. The complex covers over 1600 Ha (almost 4000 acres) of open land with over 6 km (3.72 miles) of ocean frontage and supports direct ascent to orbit flight trajectories over the Great Australian Bight, maximising spacecraft payload to orbit.
Favourable launch conditions at the Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex offers greater launch window availability and launch schedule flexibility. Stable year-round weather and low maritime and air traffic ensure our customers have unhindered access to space. Launch trajectories from Whalers Way are southward into airspace controlled by one singular body.
We work closely with all regulatory bodies to secure launch approval on behalf of our customers. Australia has excellent relationships with all space-faring nations.
We also offer the Koonibba Test Range which is Australia’s largest rocket testing facility and specialises in suborbital launches and returns from space.
Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex is located 35 minutes from the regional city of Port Lincoln which has an abundance of accommodation, restaurants and tourist attractions.
A launch pad for Australia
The Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex will enable South Australia to become the home to an emerging multi-billion dollar space industry. Its unique location offers the Australian space industry with a safe, low-impact and commercially viable launch pad into orbit.
For the Eyre Peninsula, the Whalers Way facility offers a generational opportunity to play a central role in the emergence of Space SA by hosting a new and transformational industry in the region.
Crucially, infrastructure, logistics and labor are all accessible through the site’s relative proximity to Port Lincoln, making site commercialisation viable and workforce attraction possible.
The Whalers Way facility will generate a significant number and range of sustainable jobs from manual and trades to high-value technical roles, while fueling a vibrant industry ecosystem serving the site and the full satellite supply chain.
The development also has support from the traditional owners of the land, the Nauo People, who Southern Launch are actively collaborating with to ensure economic opportunities are shared equitably.
Southern Launch’s engagement with the Nauo people builds on its strong track record of First Nations engagement at the company’s test site at Koonibba, where the Koonibba Community Aboriginal Corporation and the local community have been actively involved in developing the Test Range. The development of the range has resulted in significant investment for the local Koonibba and Ceduna communities.
