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Not for profit website/blog on astronomy, space and my writing

Pam Reid speaks on BBC Radio Merseyside about her father’s Memoir – My personal History of the British Interplanetary Society

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Founded by Phil Cleator on Friday 13 October 1933 , the British Interplanetary Society exists to this day. BIS members include Arthur C Clarke, Carl Sagan, George Bernard Shaw, and Robert Heinlein. In 1933 Leslie Johnson was 19 and Clarke, aged 16, joined in 1934.

Leslie Johnson – My Personal History of The British Interplanetary Society 1933 – 1937 Liverpool

The initial aims of the BIS were to convince the public that space travel really was possible and help develop the technology to make it happen. It was an ambitious goal, futuristic, perhaps even reckless. A tough challenge when most people would not have seen an aeroplane up close, let alone ridden in one. Speke airport, now Liverpool John Lennon, was opened in July 1933. Movies were just turning into talkies, the BBC was founded in 1922 large populations geographically separated could share the same experience without having to be in the same place at the same time. Something that was possible for the first time in human history.

Today we are familiar with terms such as satellites, rockets, spacecraft and astronauts but in the 1930s they did not exist. Very few could visualise and understand these concepts and let alone the IDEA of space and space travel.

Like many other leading economies, Britain has a flourishing space programme today. I would suggest it started in Liverpool almost 90 years ago. Yes, despite 13th October 1933 being a Friday, the BIS is still flourishing today as the oldest space advocacy group in the world.

Leslie Johnson’s daughter Pam Reid and I spoke with Tony Snell at BBC Radio Merseyside. Listen below.

More about the book and how to get a copy direct or via Amazon.

Episode 51: 5th June 2012: Profile – Author David Shayler

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David Shayler – http://www.astroinfoservice.co.uk/

You know what it is like, you buy a book on a subject of interest and enjoy it. Later you see a book on a similar subject that you probably were not going to buy but do so because it is from that same author. Gradually, you end up with several books from that author in your collection.

David Shayler is one such author for me. During the Space Day event in Droitwich earlier this year organised by British Interplanetary Society West Midlands branch, I finally got to meet David. This is a short recording of our conversation I recorded then.

Incidentally, David is the main organiser of the British Interplanetary Society’s annual – Soviet Chinese Forum taking place at the BIS headquarters in London on Saturday 9th June. A  pdf of the program for the day  is available on the online here.

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BIS Northern Meeting York 19th May 2012

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A British Interplanetary Society  meeting with a difference. The venue is in the North of England – the historic city of York. You don’t have to be a BIS member – all with an interest in spaceflight are welcome. A day long event with five speakers on subjects that include Lunar dust, Soviet & German spaceflight, origins of the BIS and technical details behind the phenomenal success of the Apollo progam.

A summary below. Full details in the pdf indicated at the bottom of the page.

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Date: Saturday 19th May 2011
Venue: Denham Room : Priory Street Centre, York , Y01 6ET
Cost: £5.00 – Full day event – Seating capacity limited to 50
Tickets – Book online here

Confirmed speakers

Deadly Lunar dust (Dr John Cain  – UK Space Biomedicine Association). The first extraterrestrial material transported by man from an alien world to Earth was the almost 400kg of lunar rocks and dust. It is mysterious, fascinating but dangerous too. What were the hazards to the Apollo astronauts who brought it here and what has been learned by the scientist in the 40 years of laboratory experiments?

Origins of the BIS in the Northwest (Gurbir Singh – https://astrotalkuk.org). The BIS was founded in the northwest of England in 1933. The key players were Philip Cleater in Liverpool and from 1936 until the end of the war, Eric Burgess in Manchester. How did they realise their ambitious vision of establishing an Interplanetary Society a quarter century before a satellite was actually put into orbit?

How Apollo flew to the Moon (David Woods – How Apollo flew to the Moon). The Apollo program that took two dozen men to the Moon between 1968 and 1972 succeeded because of ingenious technological solutions developed rapidly midst the haste of the cold war. The author of the book, “How Apollo flew to the Moon ” explains the details of one of mankind’s most remarkable technological achievements.

China’s Long March to the Cosmos  (Mike Hall – www. aelitauk.com) China was the third country to independently launch humans in to space. That was almost a decade ago. Further success has been swift, including a space walk and a woman in space. Current active programs include lunar orbiter, lunar lander, mission to Mars and a Space station. As we approach the 40th anniversary of the last men on the Moon, why is it that most experts believe that the next one will be Chinese?

German Rocket Development (Martin Dawson – York Astronomical Society). ‘Modern rocketry and spaceflight owe a lot to German rocket development of the 1920’s, ’30’s and ’40’s. Although born as a military weapon, scientists and engineers have turned this sword into a plough share. German rocketry is a story that should not be forgotten, it has highs and it has lows, but is always fascinating.

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Download this pdf for all the details. This document is version 02. I will keep it updated from time to time with a final (version 1.0) by end of April.