Woomera

History

Woomera, formerly a rocket range site located north-west of Port Augusta, shares its name with an Aboriginal throwing tool. Construction of Woomera Village began in mid-1947 to cater for thousands of people moving there as part of the Anglo-Australian Project. The project lasted for 34 years and saw Woomera become one of the most secret allied establishments in operation during the Cold War. During its heyday (1949–71), the village population reached around 7,000 as people lived and worked at Woomera and at Koolymilka campsite near Range Head, approximately west of Woomera village within the Woomera Prohibited Area. However, by the end of the 1960s, the Anglo-Australian Joint Project was rapidly winding down following the UK Government's reduction in further experimental work. Woomera Village initially operated as a "closed town" between 1947 and 1982, when the facility supported the operations of the Woomera Rocket Range during the Anglo-Australia Project. Since 1982, the general public has been able to visit and stay at Woomera. However, only Australian Government (mostly Department of Defence) personnel and contractors to the Commonwealth are able to live at Woomera on a permanent basis. The settlement was established in 1947 as a result of the Department of Defence establishment of the adjacent rocket testing range. The Woomera Village grew rapidly from 1950. A school opened that year with two teachers and by 1955 had grown to be a "Higher Primary" school from Year 1 to Intermediate (Year 10) with over 300 pupils. Following its construction over 1947–53, Woomera Village essentially operated under a specialised Commonwealth/Defence township management model rather than a local government (council) model. At the height of its operations (1947–99), over 7,000…

Most-observed species

• Emu

  Dromaius novaehollandiae (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  38
• Australian Kestrel

  Falco cenchroides Vigors & Horsfield, 1827 · Aves
  32
• Singing Honeyeater

  Gavicalis virescens (Vieillot, 1817) · Aves
  25
• Australian Raven

  Corvus coronoides Vigors & Horsfield, 1827 · Aves
  23
• Magpie-lark

  Grallina cyanoleuca (Latham, 1802) · Aves
  23
• Yellow-throated Miner

  Manorina flavigula (Gould, 1840) · Aves
  23
• Crested Pigeon

  Ocyphaps lophotes (Temminck, 1822) · Aves
  22
• White-plumed Honeyeater

  Ptilotula penicillata (Gould, 1837) · Aves
  22