Woomera, South Australia, facts
Explore space and science in the secret desert town
Holidaymakers and visitors can discover a history of nuclear tests, asylum seekers, rockets, alien experiments and space research in the Australian outback.
You’d be hard-pushed to find a town with as bad a reputation as Woomera. For years, it’s very existence was hidden, as it was used as a base by the American and British military for testing weapons/ developing nuclear technology/ experimenting on aliens/ murdering children (depending which conspiracy theory you choose to believe).
When the military secrecy was toned down in 1982, and people began to realise it was there, the Australian government started shunting asylum seekers into the South Australian desert town.
Until it was shut down, the detention camp, complete with sewn-together lips and rowdy protestors, was the town’s focal image.
Whilst certainly not worth visiting as a holiday destination in its own right, it’s well worth a stop on the drive from Adelaide to Alice Springs. This is for two reasons. The first is that there is nowhere else for absolutely miles around, and the second is that it has a few curiosities worthy of a poke around.
As you enter, you can see that Woomera isn’t trying to hide its military heritage. There are rockets, tanks and big model aeroplanes everywhere. Even the local school has assorted weapons strewn all over the front lawn. All of them look strangely plastic however, like giant children’s papier mache models.
The Woomera Heritage Centre (08 8673 7042) is the hub of the tourist activity. You can immediately see the American influence – there’s a bowling alley inside, which is probably the last thing to expect in the middle of the outback. It’s not very up to date – you have to mark your scores yourself - but for sheer surreal value, chucking a few balls at the pins has to be done.
In the centre, and in the nearby museum, you can get a heavily sanitised version of what’s gone on in the area since men in uniform started arriving, and find out about the space exploration that has been conducted from the town’s observatory. Those wishing to stay a little longer can organise a tour of the rocket range.
If you want to get a little closer to rockets that have already been fired, then head on out to the nearby Lake Hart. For most of the year this is pure salt, and provides a marvellous desert landscape, with the train line running past. Don’t even think about stepping into the ‘waters’ though – a sign warns against that. Apparently there is plenty of ordnance in there that is still unexploded, and going to find it would be extremely unwise.
Elsewhere in Australia
New South Wales: Blue Mountains, Hunter Valley,Port Macquarie, Sydney
Northern Territory: Darwin, Kakadu, Katherine, Litchfield, Red Centre, Uluru
Queensland: Airlie Beach, Brisbane, Bundaberg, Cape Tribulation, Daintree, Fraser Island, Gold Coast, Rockhampton, Sunshine Coast, Whitsundays
South Australia: Outback, Woomera
Tasmania: Hobart, Outside Hobart
Victoria: Warrnambool
Western Australia: Albany,Broome, Coral Coast, Fremantle, Hutt River Province, Kalgoorlie, Kimberley, New Norcia, Nullarbor, Perth, Pilbara, Shark Bay, South West,
