the 1980s a dark sky site was established at Mount Kent and used for teaching purposes by USQ. By 2009 the facilities had grown to include the Webb, O'Mara, and the first of the Louisville telescopes. A Planewave CDK700 followed in 2013.

The observatory was significantly expanded beginning in 2016 with the establishment of MINERVA-Australis, funded by UniSQ, the Federal Government, the Australian Research Council, the University of New South Wales