WARS Special Event: Wed 21st August 2019 7:30 pm

The Waverley Amateur Radio Society has great pleasure in hosting Kerrie Dougherty who will present:

The Dish was not the whole Story: Australia’s Role in the Apollo Lunar program

The Dish is a delightful Aussie film about Australia’s role in the Apollo 11 lunar landing. However, while it’s “based on a true story”, we have to remember that it is only a movie: its focus on the crucial role played by the Parkes Radio Telescope in bringing the live television broadcast of the Apollo 11 lunar landing to the world leaves untold the much larger role in the Apollo program played by space tracking facilities in Australia.

  • How did a lightning strike help to bring satellite communications to Australia?
  • How can an Australian experiment placed on the Moon during Apollo help with future lunar exploration?
  • How did the Parkes telescope contribute to NASA’s Deep Space Network?
  • How did Australia really bring the Apollo 11 landing to the world?

Join space historian Kerrie Dougherty as she delves into the larger story behind The Dish to find out the answers.

Kerrie Dougherty is an independent space historian, curator and educator, who was previously Curator of Space Technology at the Powerhouse Museum. She is the author of Australia in Space, a comprehensive history of Australian space activities, a lecturer in space humanities for the International Space University and an elected Member of the International Academy of Astronautics. Kerrie works part-time for the Australian Space Agency and has written several science fiction guidebooks as well as numerous articles on Australia’s space history.

Please join us at Club Rose Bay, Vickery Ave Rose Bay for this prestigious event. RSVP to secretary@vk2bv.org in order to assist us with organisation of the venue.

Parking is available at the adjacent council carpark.