Thursday, 17 October 2024

Nuclear prohibition

David LIMBRICK (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (10:12): For years it seemed like there had been no great leaps in space technology, but all of that changed last weekend when a tube of stainless steel as tall as one of the light towers on the Melbourne Cricket Ground, weighing more than 4½ Melbourne trams descended from space to be captured by a pair of oversized chopsticks. All of this happened because of Elon Musk. Suddenly it seems that the prospect of humans becoming a multiplanetary species is not just science fiction. This spectacular demonstration has reignited excitement about space development we have not seen in decades, including here in Victoria. You might be surprised to learn that Victoria has a rich history of involvement in aerospace, including people from our universities designing satellites in the 1960s and another that was launched just last year. But there is something holding us back. One of the most efficient power sources for space travel is something called a radioisotope thermoelectric generator, or an RTG. These are powered by radioactive sources that are prohibited in this state. Just as government bureaucracy allowed SpaceX to overtake NASA, the Victorian government is holding us back, relegating us to spectators. I urge the government to carve out this archaic prohibition so that we can get back into the space race.