First Survey – July 1962

In July 1962 a three man team conducted a preliminary survey of several possible locations for a tracking station to succeed Muchea. Such a station would be much larger than Muchea and would be vital for the planned Project Gemini and, eventually, the Apollo Program.

At this point, only two US manned orbital flights had taken place – MA-6 (John Glenn) and MA-7 (Scott Carpenter). Such was the pace needed to achieve the goal of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth “before this decade is out”,

 

Lewis Wainwright (Station Director, Muchea Tracking Station), Edmond C. Buckley (Associate Director Tracking and Data Acquisition, NASA Headquarters) and Ian Homewood (Director of American Projects, Australian Department of Supply) travelled in a Cessna aircraft to points along the coast of North West Australia.

They were accompanied on the first leg of the trip, as far as Muchea, by Jim Mills, Department of Supply Controller for Western Australia.

Click the image for a 9 page PDF file. In late July 1962, Lewis Wainwright wrote this Report on the initial site selection survey which had just taken place. (2.4MB PDF file.) Preserved and scanned by Kevin Wainwright. Some highlights (and lowlights) of what was seen on the survey: Carnarvon: “The party arrived about one hour before dark and were taken on a conducted tour of the town. During the evening they were taken over the Whaling station and the Prawn Freezing Factory. … Party stayed at Gascoyne Hotel which is nicely equipped. Proprietor – Gordon Micklejohn.” Onslow: “There is no obvious reason for the continued existence of the town.” Port Hedland: “A town with increasing activity, good new face, but no apparent change in hotel standards – not high in recent years.” Talgarno: “Population 5. … Not an ideal location for tracking station because of lack of support Facilities.” (Talgarno was established half way along Eighty Mile Beach as the furthermost point of the Woomera Rocket Range, the longest over-land rocket range in the world.) Wittenoom: “A neat, clean township, steadily expanding.”

This map shows the towns visited as part of the initial site selection survey in July 1962.

 

Second Survey – August 1962

In August 1962 a joint NASA and WRE team conducted a second, more focussed, site selection survey.

Their primary mission was to inspect the Brown’s Range Carnarvon site identified during the previous month’s preliminary survey, though they also travelled further north and east to Darwin, via Halls Creek.

Some of the members of the Survey team, taken at Edinburgh RAAF Airfield, Salisbury, South Australia. Capt. Don Anderson, Noel Rossiter, Ozro Covington, Don Anderson, Robin Berry, Jack Dowling, First Officer Dick Evans, Capt. Nelson Hill, Fred Mentha. Scan with thanks to Kevin Wainwright. Also included in the report below.

Click the image for an 11 page PDF file. Carnarvon Station Director Lewis Wainwright penned this account for the fifth anniversary of the Carnarvon Site Survey. (18MB PDF file.) Scan with special thanks to Lauri Glocke at CROTrak.

Members of the survey team stop for a tea break. Location unknown, but likely somewhere in Carnarvon. Left to right: Captain Don Anderson (MacRobertson Miller Airlines PIlot for the charter flight – in distance), Dale Call (Head Manned Flight Engineering Branch, Goddard Space Flight Center – arms crossed), unknown (seated) but the shoulder tabs suggest he is one of the MMA flight crew possibly Dick Evans (First Officer), Don Anderson (Goddard Space Flight Center Representative in Australia – with cup and saucer), Ozro Covington (Assistant Director for Manned Flight Support, Goddard Space Flight Center, and Site Survey team leader). Transparency from the Tidbinbilla archives. Scan: Colin Mackellar.

The Survey Party on Brown’s Range at Carnarvon. Nigel Tomlinson, Fred Mentha, Lewis Wainwright, Jack Dowling, Dale Call, Don Anderson, Basil Monckton (Kneeling). From Lewis Wainwright’s photo album. With thanks to Kevin Wainwright. Also included in the report. Scan: Colin Mackellar.

The Survey Party amid wildflowers on Brown’s Range. Scan: Kevin Wainwright.

The Survey Party and two members of the air crew at an unidentified location, possibly somewhere along Shark Bay. (That area was used, in 1965, to collect truck loads of shells for the Visual Acuity Experiment for GT5 and GT6.) Scan: Kevin Wainwright.

At Darwin Airport. Jack Dowling, Rodney Briskman, Don Anderson, Noel Rossiter, Ian Homewood, Ozro Covington, Fred Mentha, Basil Monckton, Dale Call, Larry Brown. From Lewis Wainwright’s photo album. With thanks to Kevin Wainwright. Also included in the report. Scan: Colin Mackellar.