UNSW Sydney (ACSER)

The University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney) is one of Australia's leading research universities, established in 1949. The Australian Centre for Space Engineering Research (ACSER), located in the School of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications, is UNSW's primary space engineering hub, conducting research across satellite systems, space situational awareness, navigation, and communications.

ACSER built UNSW-EC0 (also designated QB50-AU02), Australia's contribution to the international QB50 constellation of 50 CubeSats studying the Earth's lower thermosphere. Developed over five years with more than 100 team members and 18+ student theses, UNSW-EC0 was deployed from the International Space Station in May 2017. It carried an Ion Neutral Mass Spectrometer and performed atmospheric measurements alongside partner satellites from over 20 countries.

Following UNSW-EC0, ACSER has pursued the M2-Pathfinder nanosatellite mission and leads research into lunar communications, space domain awareness, GNSS applications, and satellite-based IoT connectivity for remote Australia. ACSER is a founding partner of the SmartSat CRC — Australia's national research partnership for space technology — and collaborates extensively with CSIRO, Geoscience Australia, and the Australian Space Agency.