澳大利亚政府已向欧洲航天局（ESA）提交报价，计划派遣其首位受训宇航员凯瑟琳·贝内尔-佩格执行国际空间站任务 1。由于澳大利亚并非ESA或NASA成员国，必须支付市场费率以获取载人航天任务的席位 1。科学部长蒂姆·艾尔斯透露，ESA最初要求的金额远高于1亿澳元，尽管澳方的还价未公开，但预计低于这一数字 1。若提案获准，该任务最早可能于2028年实施 1。
这项巨额投资的核心战略在于利用ESA的“地理回报”原则，确保参与国获得的工业合同与其财务贡献大致成比例 1。此举旨在提升澳大利亚在空间科技领域的自主能力，并惠及国内偏远地区的医疗与通信技术发展 1。作为参考案例，加拿大曾投资逾3亿加元开发机械臂，随后获得了超过10亿美元的NASA阿尔忒弥斯计划合同，证明了此类航天投资的回报潜力 1。目前，ESA总预算约为76.9亿欧元，其中三分之二来自23个成员国的强制性GDP贡献 1。
凯瑟琳·贝内尔-佩格已于2024年4月完成ESA的基础训练，并被提名为2026年度澳大利亚人 1。
The Australian government has submitted a bid to the European Space Agency (ESA) to send its first trained astronaut, Katherine Bennell-Pegg, on a mission to the International Space Station 1. Although Australia is not a member of ESA or NASA and must pay market rates for crewed flight seats, Science Minister Tim Ayres revealed that the agency’s initial asking price was significantly higher than 100 million Australian dollars 1. The government’s counter-offer remains undisclosed but is expected to be lower than the original sum requested by ESA 1.
Bennell-Pegg, who completed ESA’s basic training in April 2024 and was nominated as Australian of the Year for 2026, represents the centerpiece of this strategic investment 1. If ESA accepts the proposal, the mission could take place as early as 2028 1. The initiative is driven by ESA’s "geographic return" principle, which ensures that participating nations receive industrial contracts roughly proportional to their financial contributions 1. This approach aims to boost Australia’s autonomy in space technology while potentially benefiting remote areas through advancements in medical and communication technologies 1.
The potential for high returns on such investments is illustrated by Canada’s experience, where an expenditure of over 300 million Canadian dollars on robotic arm development led to more than one billion US dollars in contracts with NASA’s Artemis program 1. ESA’s overall budget stands at approximately 7.69 billion euros, with two-thirds funded by mandatory GDP contributions from its 23 member states 1. By leveraging these partnerships, Australia seeks to secure long-term collaborations and technology transfer opportunities beyond the immediate scope of a single individual’s spaceflight 1.
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