UK’s space industry costs average taxpayer just £1 a year
The Government’s investment in the country’s burgeoning space sector costs the average taxpayer just £1 a year, according to a UK Space Agency (UKSA) lead today.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast about how the UK’s space ambitions fit into cost of living concerns, exploration science manager at (UKSA) Libby Jackson explained that the Government’s current investment into space is much less than initiatives such as HS2.
Stateside space agency NASA has today wheeled its new Moon rocket SLS Block 1 onto the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, ahead of an unmanned launch on 29 August.
It is just one small step in NASA’s Artemis programme, which seeks to put boots on the Moon for the first time in 50-years.
The programme also includes plans for a Lunar Gateway, a space station in the Moon’s orbit which would facilitate lunar activity, in collaboration with the European Space Agency and UKSA.
“The UK is also making important contributions to the Lunar Gateway, currently in development through the European Space Agency’s exploration programme, in line with the ambitious plans laid out in the National Space Strategy,” added Jackson.
“The Artemis programme marks the next chapter of human space exploration, and we look forward to continued involvement as it comes to life.”