The new UK Space Agency (UKSA) will take over responsibility for government policy and the key budgets for space, according to ministers. The agency, which comes into being on 1 April, will also represent Britain on space matters in all negotiations with international partners. The UKSA's name, logo and remit were announced at a conference in London.

Its establishment should bring more coherence to space policy - something critics say has been missing for years. In particular, it is hoped an executive agency that can champion British interests abroad will help an already successful space industry to grow still further.

"People in the UK are not aware of just how good Britain is both at space research and in terms of our space industry; [a space agency] is going to make people more aware of that," Lord Drayson, the minister for science and innovation, told BBC News. "But in practical terms, it's going to make the decision-making by government in all aspects of space policy much more joined up, better co-ordinated - a single point within government which has responsibility for making sure that we get everything in alignment such that the space research we do, the space industry that we're building, fulfils its true potential."

where's the nearest black hole?