Dr Rodrigo Praino is an associate professor of politics and public policy at Flinders University.

In a new book, Dr Praino says the race between countries to settle on the moon and Mars is also a race to gain power in space.

In this episode, he tells host Adam Thorn why we need to build better communication between the major powers of the US, China, and Russia to avoid future conflict.

Plus, he discusses what tactics a smaller space player such as Australia should take as the sector continues to grow.