Thomas Zurbuchen, the associate administrator of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, signalled the launch could lead to further collaboration. “This commercial launch range in Australia opens up new access to the Southern Hemisphere’s night sky, expanding the possibilities for future science missions,” Zurbuchen said.

Another NASA official, Nicky Fox, said the launch would allow the agency to observe phenomena that could not be seen from the United States. “The launches will allow us to explore how a star’s light can influence a planet’s habitability among other things,” Fox said.

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NASA last launched from Australia in 1995, when its rockets lifted off from the military-run and highly secretive Royal Australian Air Force Woomera Range Complex in South Australia.

The three suborbital missions launching this year will be purely peaceful, setting their sights on complex space research.

One will examine x-ray light produced by the gasses that fill the space between stars. Another will look at how stars’ light affects the atmosphere of planets around them. A third will target the two stars closest to our sun, measuring a part of the extreme ultraviolet light spectrum that has not been studied yet.

The last launch will be on July 12.

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