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Public Talk – Rocket Societies in Liverpool and Manchester in the 1930s

By Gurbir Dated: March 10, 2022 Leave a Comment

Manchester and Liverpool share a unique history in the development of rocket technology. The desire for spaceflight was promoted by the British Interplanetary Society, founded in Liverpool in 1933 and the Manchester Interplanetary Society in 1936.

They were not unique. Similar societies existed in Germany, Austria, the USA and the USA. There was even a one-man effort in 1934 in India.

In a public talk on Thursday evening 24th March, I will talk about the rise of these societies, the individuals who established them, the impact of World War Two on the development of rocketry after that led to the emergence of the Space Age – Sputnik in 1957 and first human spaceflight, Yuri Gagarin in 1961.

Some of the people who I will speak about are Phil Cleator and Leslie Johnson (founders of the British Interplanetary Society in Liverpool) Eric Burgess (founder of the Manchester Interplanetary Society), Willy Ley (a key player in German rocket society). As well as some early BIS members including Patrick Moore, Arthur C Clarke and Carl Sagan.

The event is organised by the Keighley Astronomical Society and take place in Keighley, Yorkshire starting at 7pm on Thursday 24th March 2022.

BIS HQ in London
MIS Publication – The Astronaut 1937
MIS Member
Stanley Davis
Members of the Manchester Interplanetary Society
Early meeting of the BIS
Plaque unveiled by Tony Lloyde MP
14 May 2012
Philip Turner
his farther Harry Turner was a member of the MIS
From L to R – Tony Cross, Tony Llyode MP, Frank O’Rourke and Alistair Scott
Pioneer Plaque
Inspired by Eric Burgess

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Episode 98 Astrophotography with Nik Szymanek

By Gurbir Dated: October 18, 2021 Leave a Comment

Nik Syzamnek is one of the UK’s leading astrophotographers and one who has been doing it for almost four decades.

Nik Szymanek

In this episode, Nik shares his unique perspective on how the hobby of astronomy and especially astrophotography has evolved since the 1980s when he first started.

We cover a lot of ground including modern software used for image processing and telescope control, increasing use of robotic telescopes e.g. Telescope Live by amateurs and the obstacles introduced by Climate Change and the mega-constellations of satellites. We conclude this episode on his lesser-known skills as a drummer in a band.

Books
2005 – Infinity Rising: A Personal View of the Universe
2018 – Co-author of – Spacerocks: A collectors’ guide to meteorites, tektites and impactites
2020 – Shooting Stars – 2nd Edition (AstronomyNow website)

Nik’s images on Flickr.

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A video of this interview is also available here on Youtube and includes many of his images.

As the lock-down begins to end – Nik is getting out and doing some talks live. If you are in the area – catch him live in 2021 here


2nd November: Stour Astronomical Society
17th November; Havering Astronomical Society twitter.com/HaveringSociety

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Episode 92: Revisiting Panspermia with Prof. Wickramasinghe

By Gurbir Dated: January 1, 2021 Leave a Comment

Prof. Chandra Wickramasinghe

The idea of Panspermia, that life exists throughout the universe and spreads via asteroids, comets and cosmic dust, has been around for a long time. Two of the strongest advocates were Professor Fred Hoyle and Professor Chandra Wickramasinghe. 

In this episode I spoke at length with Professor Wickramasinghe about his long and distinguished career championing the idea of panspermia the covering the topics:

  • Initial difficulties in establishing Panspermia as a legitimate and respectable topic for scientific study.
  • Professor Wickramasinghe’s journey in 1960 form Cylon (as it was known at the time) to Cambridge as Hoyle’s Phd student.
  • His personal recollections of Fred Hoyle (initially his Phd supervisor and later collaborator) and Arthur C Clarke, who had made Cylon his home in the late 1950s.
  • His views on how the research on Panspermia has developed and where it stands today

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  • Prof. Fred Hoyle 1962
  • Fred Hoyle and Chandra Wickramasinghe 1978
  • Fred Hoyle and Wickramasinghe 1980
  • Fred Hoyle and Chandra Wickramasinghe 2001
  • Home-made telescope late 1950s
Pictures curtesy of Prof. Wickramasinghe

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New Book – British Interplanetary Society. The Liverpool Years – 1933-1937

By Gurbir Dated: October 12, 2020 Leave a Comment

Working title and Cover

Available in early 2021.

Of the many rocketry societies that emerged around the world in the early 1930s, only the British Interplanetary Society, founded in Liverpool, remains in existence today. This first-hand account from a founding member and first hon. Secretary Leslie Johnson chronicles the days leading up to the establishment of the BIS on 13th October 1933 and its relocation to London in 1937.  

Aircraft, electricity and telephones had transformed the quality of life in the first quarter of the 20th century. This enormous leap in a very short time inspired a generation to unleash its ingenuity. In the shadow of the great depression, talented engineers, scientists and gifted writers awoke to possibilities of new worlds beyond Earth.

Fired by the imagined futures conceived in science fiction magazines including Wonder Stores, Amazing Stories, Astounding Stories and Tales of Wonder, many began to think of space travel as a possibility within reach.

Youth, enthusiasm and a vivid imagination were a constant feature of all Rocketry Societies. Philip Cleator was twenty-five years old when he founded the BIS in 1933 and Leslie Johnson, just Nineteen. In the following year Arthur C Clarke Joined aged sixteen. It was not just Clarke who reveled in writing science fiction, but most who pursued the interplanetary ideals were engrossed in reading or writing science fiction. The formation of the BIS coincided with the advent of science fiction, which also took root initially in northwest England. During these early days, Johnson describes the ease with which members and office holders moved easily between both genres.

The BIS’s persistence is down to the commitment and dedication of its many industrious members during its almost ninety years of existence. But for its formative years in Liverpool, Leslie Johnson bore a significant burden. In this personal account Johnson records those early days and captures the nuances of the time and people who with enormous foresight established and nurtured the BIS through that critical early phase.

Since then, the BIS has helped shape UK’s national space policy and played a critical role as a founder member of the International Astronautical Federation.

Johnson’s book concludes with an epilogue from Gurbir Singh who provides an update on the BIS’s progress. He describes how the BIS has continued to advocate the ideals of interplanetary travel, showcases past and current members who continue promoting the national and international value and ideals of spaceflight.

The book will be available in paperback, hardback and ebook from early 2021.

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