July. August 61a deep space tracking station at Tidbinbilla, just north of
Honeysuckle, which was used to track the Lunar Module; and
Parkes, which provided a downlink backup. All but Carnarvon
were rigged up to receive the Lunar Module’s downlink TV signal.
Two days after the Apollo 11 launch, however, a fire at
Tidbinbilla resulted in a switch of duty. Honeysuckle would
track the Lunar Module and, when the two vehicles were
operating separately, Tidbinbilla would be responsible for the
Command Module.T
HE HONEYSUCKLE CREEK Tracking Station complex
was located in the ACT’s geographic centre, on and
immediately below a ridge that sat saddle-like between
two granite peaks. It had been built on a series of terraces bull-
dozed out of the mountainside to create a 5.7ha clearing among
the eucalypts. Secured to the top of the ridge was the station’s
most prominent feature – its 26m dish – the apex of which was
almost 1200m above sea level. The station’s operations building
and power generators were on the terraces below. Snow often
fell at the site during the winter months, especially in July.
With the Moon landing scheduled for just after 6am on
Monday 21 July (AEST), Tom Reid had stayed over at the
tracking station the previous night and was up early to listen in
to Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin as they f lew their Lunar
Module towards the Moon’s surface. Although the Moon would
not rise over Honeysuckle until just after 11am, Reid could hear
the astronauts talking to Mission Control through NASA’s
communication net. And just after 6.15am, he heard Armstrong
say: “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle ha s l a nded.”
According to the Apollo 11 f light plan, Armstrong and Aldrin
were not due to take their Moon walk until about 4pm. At that
time their connection to Mission Control would be via the
dishes at Honeysuckle and Parkes, with the much bigger Parkes
dish earmarked as the prime receiver of lunar TV footage.Armstrong and Aldrin, however, didn’t want to wait that
long. Just after 8am, they convinced Mission Control to let
them conduct an early Moon walk, to commence as soon as
they had completed their post-landing checks, eaten some-
thing, and suited up. NASA’s new best estimate was that
Armstrong would take his first step at about 11am.
At that time Goldstone would still be receiving a good
signal, while the Lunar Module would just be coming into view
of Honeysuckle. The moonrise over the Parkes dish, however,
would still be more than two hours away.
Just before 9am, as the Honeysuckle team scrambled to adjust
to this demanding new timetable, prime minister John Gorton
turned up for a station tour. Believing he had little choice in
the matter, Tom had reluctantly agreed to this VIP visit the
previous evening. But knowing that his team would be less than
impressed by the prospect of such an interruption, he hadn’t
forewarned them.
As the prime minister toured the operations building for almost
an hour, some of the trackers cursed under their breath as they
suddenly became aware of Gorton and his entourage hovering
behind them. After Honeysuckle’s dish had been moved out of
its tracking alignment for a prime ministerial photo opportunity,
Gorton departed at about 10am and Tom and his team were able
to refocus on final checks with Mission Control.
At 11.15am the Moon rose over the gum-tree covered hori-
zon beside Dead Mans Hill, upon which the receivers on
Honeysuckle’s dish locked on to the Lunar Module’s signals,
which were being generated by its tiny 66cm antenna. The astro-
nauts’ voices and telemetry now streamed into Honeysuckle’s
operations control room.
After being processed by the station’s computers, these signals
were forwarded to Houston, all at a speed that made it possible
for Mission Control to have a conversation, in almost real time,
with Armstrong and Aldrin.Three hours before Armstrong’s first
step, prime minister Gorton held a press
conference in front of the Honeysuckle
Creek dish, which had been moved out
of its tracking alignment to facilitate this
photo opportunity.Honeysuckle Creek was closed as a
space-tracking station in 1981 and later
levelled, although the facility’s concrete
foundations remain. This outdoor
display was added in 2001.PHOTO CREDITS, FROM LEFT: IMAGE COURTESY NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF AUSTRALIA. NAA: A1200, L82028;
PETER MCNEILL/AUSTRALIAN GEOGRAPHIC Continued page 64