Southern Launch

[3] The company, which has its main office in Adelaide,[1] South Australia, provides infrastructure and logistics support for orbital and sub-orbital launches of commercial satellites and payloads.

[8] DEWC is engaged in an advanced sensing program involving satellites capable of helping the Australian Defence Force to detect and track challenging targets.

[9] The range is located on Aboriginal land by permission of the Koonibba community, some of whose members have been hired to help set up and operate it – including cordoning off roads and other traffic control, interacting with emergency services, and guiding public spectators at launch time to ensure safe conditions.

[15] The first two vehicles to be launched, on 19 September 2020, were small 34 kilograms (75 pounds), 3.4 metres (11 feet) long DART rockets, which took a northward sub-orbital trajectory from the Koonibba site.

Bird enthusiasts are hoping that the site may be assessed as unsuitable for rocket launches, saying that they threaten the survival of the Southern emu-wren;[19] others are concerned about potential fire risks.

[19] Southern Launch's CEO, LLoyd Damp, said the company had developed a 3200-page environmental impact statement in consultation with a range of industry experts.

It was sponsoring research into the lower Eyre Peninsula's fauna and flora; implementing a weed, vermin and feral animal eradication program; and reintroducing native vegetation.