Dr Jonathon Ralston

I am a Senior Principal Research Scientist with CSIRO Mineral Resources in Brisbane. For almost 30 years, I have had the privilege of working with CSIRO to deliver innovative solutions that address challenges in extreme resource environments.

My work has focused on advancing remote operations, automation, robotics, geosensing, and systems integration, directly contributing to significant improvements in industry safety, sustainability, and efficiency. I have proposed, led, and participated in major industry-funded projects, including teleoperated reconnaissance vehicles, highwall mining guidance systems, continuous miner automation, automated bolting machines, shuttle car automation, and real-time geosensing technologies. I made significant contributions to the award-winning Longwall Automation (LASC) project, which has been commercialised internationally, delivering over $3B in net benefits to the Australian industry.

I lead CSIRO's Frontier Mining Research Team, where our vision is to develop a fully connected digital ecosystem to realise the next generation of remotely-supervised closed-loop mining systems. As CSIRO's Capability Lead for ISRU and Frontier Technology, I directly support CSIRO's emerging activities in In-Situ Resource Utilisation (ISRU), collaborating with CSIRO's world-class capabilities across multiple sectors to promote innovation diffusion between the space and Earth resource sectors. I actively participate in international space working groups to support global space exploration efforts.

I greatly value the opportunities to engage deeply with industry, lead high-performing research teams, contribute on projects that have real impact, and to inspire people to achieve their full potential.