Company

Who is Capricorn Space?

Whilst our name is new, we have a long association with the space industry and possess a solid mix of experienced and youthful engineers, technicians and personnel.

We see space as an interconnected business and understand that ground segment capability and location are as important as the spacecraft itself.

Our name, Capricorn Space, was purposely chosen to reflect our southern hemisphere location and named after the Tropic of Capricorn which spans the breadth of the Australian continent.

Tropic of Capricorn
World Map

Our vision is to increase the value of satellite data within the Digital World.

Our mission is to empower organisations to access their satellite data with speed and efficiency.

Senior Management

John Knowles OAM

Founder of Capricorn Space and Investor


John has over 50 years of business experience with a background in property development and construction, along with extensive private interests including backing start-up ventures both within Australia and overseas. John has provided the initial seed capital for Capricorn Space as a Founding Investor and is committed to fully equity funding the proposed commercial venture. His passion for turning concepts into reality has been successfully demonstrated many times and John welcomes the opportunity of constructing an enduring Australian space capability.

Mark Thompson AM

CEO and Chief Engineer


Mark has worked in the satellite industry for several decades starting with AUSSAT, Australia’s National Satellite System, in the 1980s and with organisations around the world including INMARSAT, Intelsat, Australia’s National Broadband Network and the Australian Department of Defence as well as many smaller, but equally rewarding, companies. Mark holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Communications and a Master of Systems Engineering and appreciates the holistic interaction required between space and ground segments in order to achieve mission objectives. Mark is a founding partner of Capricorn Space and has the responsibilities of CEO and Chief Engineer.

Gary Shmith

Marketing and Business Development


Gary has worked in the communications industry for over 30 years and specialised in marketing of satellite related products and services. Gary also holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Communications and after 10 years of practicing engineering and managing specialist communications projects, elected to pursue a commercial path and has since specialised in product and marketing development achieving success with brand awareness and international sales. Gary welcomes the opportunity to apply these skills to the services offered by Capricorn Space.

The Capricorn Space Team

In addition, Capricorn Space has a committed and dynamic team who provide outstanding work in the areas of Regulatory and Spectrum Management, Project Management, Technical Liaison, Operations Management and Logistics Support. We will continue to expand our team as required.

Bringing world-leading satellite data services
to the Southern Hemisphere

Capricorn Space’s location provides clients with unparalleled data access while bringing
unique opportunities to the region

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