Woomera (31°12′S 136°49′ECoordinates: 31°12′S 136°49′E) is a town in South Australia, 488 km/305 mi. north of Adelaide, along the Stuart Highway. Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ... Capital Adelaide Government Constitutional monarchy Governor Marjorie Jackson-Nelson Premier Mike Rann (ALP) Federal representation  - House seats 11  - Senate seats 12 Gross State Product (2004-05)  - Product ($m)  $59,819 (5th)  - Product per capita  $38,838/person (7th) Population (End of September 2006)  - Population  1,558,200 (5th)  - Density  1. ... Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia, with a population of over 1. ... The Stuart Highway is one of Australias major roadways. ...

The population of "Woomera Village" reached 6000 people at its peak, but is now stable at around 300. Next to the village is the Woomera Prohibited Area (WPA), a military area 127,000 square km in area; it is about the same size as England, making it the largest testing area in the world. The area has been used since the 1950s for joint Australia-United Kingdom weapons and aerospace testing (including testing of nuclear weapons). It was also home to the Nurrungar satellite ground station (31.323809° S 136.776942° E, closed in 1999 when its activities were moved to Pine Gap) which was thought to be part of the global ECHELON intelligence gathering network. Woomera Prohibited Area is a weapons testing range located in central South Australia. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... Look up aerospace in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Preparation for an underground nuclear test at the Nevada Test Site in the 1980s. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 kilometers (11 mi) above the hypocenter A nuclear weapon derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions of fusion or fission. ... Joint Defence Facility Nurrungar (JDFN), located on the edge of Island Lagoon, approximately 15 km south of Woomera, South Australia at 31. ... This article is about the year. ... Pine Gap is just west of Alice Springs, near the geographic center of Australia. ... This article is about the spy network. ...

Missile Park northern section

Woomera was named thus after the Aboriginal spear thrower of the same name, in recognition of the place being a launch site in much the same way the woomera launches the spear. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1180x784, 176 KB)Missile Park northern section. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1180x784, 176 KB)Missile Park northern section. ... This article is about the woomera, a weapon. ...

Although many sounding rockets were launched from Woomera, only two satellites were launched there successfully. These satellites were the British satellite Prospero in 1971 and the Australian WREsat in 1967. Nowadays most pads at Woomera are abandoned, but there are still launches of sounding rockets. The Australian Space Research Institute conducts several of these launches each year. A sounding rocket, sometimes called an elevator research rocket, is an instrument-carrying suborbital rocket designed to take measurements and perform scientific experiments during its flight. ... The Prospero X-3 satellite (official designation 05580 / 71093A) was the only satellite to be launched by a British rocket. ... Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. ... Wresat (abbreviation for: Weapons Research Establishment Satellite) was the name of the first Australian satellite. ... Year 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. ... The Australian Space Research Institute (ASRI) came about in the early 1990s as the result of a merger between the AUSROC Launch Vehicle Development Group at Monash University in Melbourne and the Australian Space Engineering Research Association (ASERA). ...

Woomera is chosen by Kistler Aerospace as the first launch site of their K-1 RLV ^[1]. The first launch is planned for late 2008 ^[2]. This page is a candidate for speedy deletion, because: it is patent nonsense. ... An illustration of a K-1 launch (RpK) The Kistler K-1 is a two-stage, fully reusable aerospace vehicle now in commercial development. ... A reusable launch system (or RLV: reusable launch vehicle) is a launch vehicle which is capable of launching into space more than once. ... 2008 (MMVIII) will be a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

From 1999 to 2003, the nearby Woomera Immigration Reception and Processing Centre, held asylum seekers and refugees. This article is about the year. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The India Compound showing childrens play equipment at centre (courtesy of HREOC) The Woomera Immigration Reception and Processing Centre (IRPC) was an Australian immigration detention facility near the village of Woomera in South Australia. ...

Missile Park southern section

Location of Woomera in South Australia (red)

Woomera's attractions include Missile Park which features missiles and rockets developed at Woomera, and a visitors centre and museum which was formerly a recreation centre for U.S. Air Force personnel working at Nurrungar and their families. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1185x786, 320 KB)Missile Park Southern section. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1185x786, 320 KB)Missile Park Southern section. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 515 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (800 × 931 pixel, file size: 51 KB, MIME type: image/png) Shows location of w: , South Australia marked in red in the Australian state of w:South Australia. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 515 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (800 × 931 pixel, file size: 51 KB, MIME type: image/png) Shows location of w: , South Australia marked in red in the Australian state of w:South Australia. ...

Woomera is often used by DSTO (Defence Science and Technology Organisation), Australia's version of DARPA (USA) or DSTL (UK).

See also

• British nuclear tests at Maralinga (part of the Woomera Prohibited Area)
• Skylark launch tower

The Maralinga atomic weapons test site was set up on the Nullarbor Plain in South Australia during the early 1950s, as a joint test facility between the British and Australian governments. ... A Skylark tower is a tower required for the launch of earlier versions of Skylark-rockets. ...

External links

• Woomera website
• Woomera on the Web
• History of Woomera Meteorological Office Bureau of Meteorology
• Woomera Orbital Launch site
• Collection of photographs taken by Bob Miller in 1994 and held by Pictures Branch at National Library of Australia, Canberra

References

1. ^ http://www.rocketplane.com/press/20070108b.html
2. ^ http://www.rocketplane.com/press/20060818a.html