Australian SKA Regional Centre (AusSRC)

What Australian SKA Regional Centre (AusSRC) does

AusSRC is an unincorporated joint venture between CSIRO, Curtin University, the Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre, and the University of Western Australia, established to serve as Australia's node in the international SKA Regional Centre Network (SRCNet). The organization provides high-performance computing infrastructure, data processing pipelines, and software development support for radio astronomy research, enabling scientists to access, process, and analyze data from SKA precursor telescopes (ASKAP, MWA) and the future SKA observatory. Its product portfolio includes the SRCNet platform itself, the AusSRC Science Enabling Projects (ASEPs), the Merit Allocation Program (MAP), the ARIA industry engagement program, and bespoke software development and science support services. Technical capabilities center on HPC and cloud infrastructure for exabyte-scale data flows, including specialized pipelines using Nextflow, wsclean, PyBDSF, ADIOS2 compression, and hybrid compute approaches.

The organization's business model is government-funded research infrastructure, not commercial revenue generation. The Australian Department of Industry, Science and Resources provided a $63 million federal grant covering the first 10 years of operations to 2030/31, supplemented by partner in-kind contributions (Pawsey supercomputing access, CSIRO facilities, university overhead) bringing total investment to over $90 million over the period. Core services to researchers and SKA science projects are provided at no cost; the ARIA Program offers up to $25,000 per project to Australian SMEs for HPC-enabled innovation, with an inaugural pool of $50,000 in 2026. Go-to-market is community-led and event-driven, relying on workshops (e.g., ASEP Community Engagement Workshops), Astrofest outreach, social media presence, and direct engagement through an Industry & External Engagement Lead.

Customer segments include the Australian SKA science community (primary), the international astronomy research community, Australian SMEs and startups via the ARIA Program, and broader industry partners seeking HPC collaboration. AusSRC supports named research projects including WALLABY, MWA/MIGHTEE, EMU, DINGO, FLASH, and collaborates internationally with South Africa's IDIA and Chinese counterparts via ACAMAR. The organization is governed by a Board chaired by independent Chair Patricia Kelly, with Dr Karen Lee-Waddell serving as inaugural Director.

Name

Australian SKA Regional Centre (AusSRC)

Legal name

Australian SKA Regional Centre (AusSRC)

Website

https://aussrc.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Australia's node of the international SKA Regional Centre Network, providing high-performance computing and data processing infrastructure for radio astronomy research. Operates as a four-way joint venture between CSIRO, Curtin University, Pawsey, and UWA, funded by a $63M federal grant.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Astronomy Research Infrastructure

NAICS

Space Research and Technology (92711)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

International Science, Technology & Space Cooperation Organizations (BPADAAAK)

Keywords

• Radio astronomy data
• High-performance computing
• Data processing pipelines
• Research infrastructure
• SKA Regional Centre

Headquarters

HQ city

Perth (Kensington)

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Australian Government Grant: Primary revenue from federal government funding. The Department of Industry, Science and Resources awarded $63 million grant to support the first 10 years of AusSRC operations. Combined with partner contributions, over $90 million will be invested over 10 years.
2. ARIA Program Funding: Astronomy Resources for Industry Applications program provides up to $25,000 per project in HPC-related expense coverage for Australian SMEs and startups. Total funding pool of $50,000 for the inaugural 2026 round.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

AusSRC is a joint venture between CSIRO, Curtin University, the Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre, and the University of Western Australia that operates as Australia's node of the international SKA Regional Centre Network (SRCNet). It provides high-performance computing infrastructure, software pipelines, and science support services for processing, storing, and distributing the massive data outputs from the SKA telescopes and Australian SKA precursors (ASKAP, MWA). It also runs science enabling programs, the ARIA industry innovation program, and a Merit Allocation Program supporting researchers and Australian SMEs.

Product overview

The Australian SKA Regional Centre (AusSRC) is an equal partnership between CSIRO, Curtin University, Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre, and the University of Western Australia. It operates as a joint venture organization that serves as Australia's portion of the international SKA Regional Centre Network (SRCNet). AusSRC provides a portfolio of services including science enabling projects (ASEPs), the ARIA industry innovation program, merit allocation programs, science support services, software development, and HPC infrastructure access. The centre supports Australian SKA precursor science using ASKAP and MWA telescopes, and enables the global flow of data and processing needed for SKA telescopes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SRCNet (SKA Regional Centre Network)

Quantifiable outcome

• 300 PB per year data handling capacity for SKA-Low
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered key, affiliate and core.

• Inter-University Institute for Data Intensive Astronomy (IDIA)keyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025MoU enables critical international data transfers for MeerKAT telescope science. IDIA is South Africa's data-intensive astronomy institute. Collaboration supports long-period radio transient research using AARNet's high-speed network and Globus data transfer platform.
• ACAMAR (Australian-China Consortium for Astrophysical Research)affiliateStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025ACAMAR supports collaborative exchange between Australian and Chinese astronomers. Dr. Shaoguang Guo from ChinaSRC/SHAO visited AusSRC as part of this fellowship program.
• CSIRO (Australia's national science agency)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2023CSIRO is one of four equal partners in the AusSRC joint venture. They provide access to the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory where SKA-Low is located, ASKAP telescope operations, and technical expertise in space and astronomy research.
• Curtin UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2023Curtin University, through the Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy (CIRA), provides research expertise and hosts AusSRC personnel. Joint venture partner providing human resources and access to university facilities.
• Pawsey Supercomputing Research CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2023Pawsey provides HPC infrastructure including supercomputing capabilities essential for processing SKA data. Hosted the official signing ceremony for the joint venture in October 2023.
• University of Western Australia (UWA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2023UWA hosts the ICRAR node and serves as Head Agent for AusSRC grant agreements. Provides research facilities and serves as the administrative hub for the joint venture.
• SKA Observatory (SKAO)coreTechnology or IntegrationSKAO is the international organization building and operating SKA telescopes. AusSRC is Australia's contribution to SRCNet, the global network supporting SKA data distribution and processing.
• AARNetkeyTechnology or IntegrationAustralian academic network providing high-speed research network infrastructure for international data transfers between AusSRC and IDIA for MeerKAT science projects.
• Astronomy Australia Limited (AAL)affiliateStrategic or Co-development PartnerAAL is an affiliate partner supporting Australian astronomy infrastructure coordination and community engagement.
• CARTA CollaborationkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerAusSRC joined the CARTA (Cube Analysis and Rendering Tool for Astronomy) collaboration in 2025. CARTA is a world-leading astronomy visualization platform used by thousands of researchers globally.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR): Australian radio astronomy research centre jointly operated by Curtin and UWA - the same two universities that host AusSRC nodes. ICRAR is the scientific research engine that AusSRC's data infrastructure supports; many AusSRC staff are seconded from ICRAR.
• Pawsey Supercomputing Research Centre: One of AusSRC's four equal joint venture partners and the underlying HPC infrastructure provider. Pawsey supplies the supercomputing capability that AusSRC pipelines run on, making it both a partner and a structural peer in Australia's national HPC ecosystem.
• ASTRON (Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy): Dutch national radio astronomy institute that operates LOFAR and is developing the Dutch SKA regional centre. Highly comparable as a country-level research infrastructure combining radio astronomy science, HPC, and SKA/SRCNet readiness.
• Inter-University Institute for Data Intensive Astronomy (IDIA): South Africa's national data-intensive astronomy institute and a formal AusSRC partner via MoU. Directly comparable as a regional centre node supporting MeerKAT radio astronomy data processing, distributed HPC, and science support for radio survey teams.

Broad incumbents

• Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SRCNet programme): The SKAO-led SRCNet programme itself is the broader umbrella; SRCNet Working Groups coordinate technical development across regional centres like AusSRC. Conceptually comparable as the parent programme AusSRC serves.
• National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO): US national radio astronomy facility operated by Associated Universities Inc. under NSF. Comparable as a national-scale radio astronomy organisation supporting the VLA, ALMA, and the future ngVLA, with similar science support and data management mandates.
• SKA Observatory (SKAO): The intergovernmental organisation building and operating the SKA telescopes. AusSRC is explicitly 'We to Them' - SKAO is the upstream observatory customer and the convener of the SRCNet in which AusSRC participates as Australia's contribution.

Emerging players

• Joint Institute for VLBI in Europe (JIVE): European distributed infrastructure supporting very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) radio astronomy. Comparable to AusSRC as a multi-country, distributed scientific data processing and support organisation, though narrower in radio technique scope.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/aussrc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/australian-ska-regional-centre
• Instagraminstagram.com/aussrc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Australian SKA Regional Centre (AusSRC)