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Speak to the Moon with Jodrell Bank
:: 02 July, 2009
In celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Moon landing, The Moonbounce event, on Sunday 19 July, is the highlight in a day of inspiring family activities and talks on the Moon landings at The Jodrell Bank Observatory, Cheshire.
The event begins at 12 noon and will include presentations by special guests, including Professor Colin Pillinger - one of the few Britons who worked on the Apollo programme - and Andrew Smith, author of "Moondust: In Search of the Men Who Fell to Earth", in which he interviewed astronauts who have walked on the Moon. There will also be an exclusive video message from Buzz Aldrin.
On 21 July 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the Moon, uttering the memorable words "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind".
Now, members of the public can have the unique opportunity to hear their own voices returning to Earth from the Moon, with the words they would have used in Neil Armstrong’s place.
Celebrity supporters have already put forward their suggestions:
Sir Patrick Moore: “This is mankind’s first step on the moon; but certainly not our last. The moon should become a living world.”
Brian May: “May this be the first step for Humanity to a better place...may we leave our squabbles back on Earth.”
The competition, which is being run in conjunction with the Government's 'Science: So what? So everything' campaign, is open to all members of the public.
Entries can be made at www.direct.gov.uk/sciencesowhat.
All entries must be submitted by 12pm on Sunday 12 July 2009.
As five lucky winners of the Moonbounce competition read out their messages, their words will be turned into radio signals by Jodrell Bank scientists, transmitted towards the Moon and reflected off its surface.
After travelling through space at the speed of light, the returning signals will be caught just a few seconds later using the giant Lovell Telescope. The winners will be able to hear their own voices echoing back to Earth from the surface of the Moon, a quarter of a million miles away. They will also get an exclusive tour of the magnificent Lovell Telescope.
Despite its age, the famous Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank remains a world-leading instrument for scientific observation and discovery. It will play a key role in the super-powerful E-Merlin network of telescopes – due to become fully operational in the next year - which will allow astronomers to probe key questions relating to the origin and evolution of galaxies, stars and planets.
Other activities during the celebratory event include discussion of Jodrell Bank's role in the Space Race, special showings of archive video footage about the Moon landings, rocket workshops for kids and planetarium shows.
Tickets for the event on 19 July are now available (£4 for adults; £2 for children and concessions) and can be purchased by calling the Jodrell Bank Visitor Centre on 01477 571339.
Teresa Anderson, Director of the Jodrell Bank Discovery Centre said: “We really hope that people from across the UK can join us for this fantastic occasion and celebrate our continuing exploration of space.”
Jodrell Bank’s scientists played a significant role in the Space Race including:
* In 1957, the first act of the famous Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank was to detect the carrier rocket of Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite marking the dawn of the Space Age
* In 1959, the Lovell Telescope tracked the first rocket to ever reach the Moon, the Soviet Luna 2 mission, and received data from the first rocket to circle the Moon and photograph its previously unseen far side
* In 1966, the Lovell Telescope received the first pictures ever to be sent from the surface of the Moon by the spacecraft Luna 9
* In 1969, telescopes at Jodrell Bank tracked the Eagle Lander carrying astronauts onto the surface of the Moon
* The Jodrell scientists simultaneously tracked the unmanned Soviet spacecraft Luna 15 – the data revealed this rocket orbited the Moon and crash-landed onto its surface at 15:50 on 21st July just a few hours before the Americans lifted off from the Moon’s surface.
Release link: http://www.manchester.ac.uk/aboutus/news/display/?id=4846
Tags: Moonbounce event , speed of light , Lovell Telescope , ,
