Australia would send its own satellites into space to monitor military movements in the Asia-Pacific under a bold plan being considered by the Australian Defence Force.

The Defence White Paper, released last week by the Turnbull government, says that access to space intelligence will become increasingly important over coming years.

The paper flags that Australia will spend an extra $3 to $4 billion on enhanced satellite imagery capability as well as up to another $2 billion on space situational awareness systems and radars out to 2039.