Join us for the June 2023 public meeting of the Space Association of Australia – all welcome!  Date: Monday, 26 June 2023 Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:00 pm AEST Meeting Time: 7:00 - 9:00 pm AEST Venue: Golden Gate Hotel, 238 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne Venue update: We are back in the 'big room' upstairs at the Golden Gate Hotel. We hope this will ease any social distancing concerns and make the meeting more comfortable for everyone. We will still have dinner downstairs and no food is to be consumed upstairs. How to find us:  The Golden Gate Hotel is on the north western corner of the intersection of Clarendon and Coventry Streets in South Melbourne. Take the stairs up to level 1 - we'll be in the Coventry Room. Getting there: By car: Car parking is best in Coventry Street west of Clarendon Street. By tram: Route 12 (via Collins Street), Stop 127 (York Street, then walk south) or Stop 128 (Dorcas Street, then walk north). Meals available: Join us for a meal from 6:00 pm on the ground floor of the Golden Gate Hotel before the meeting begins upstairs in the Coventry Room at 7:00 pm - the menu can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there! If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here:   

Join us for the May 2023 meeting of the Space Association of Australia – all welcome!  Date: Monday, 22 May 2023 Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:00 pm AEST 2023 AGM: 7:00 - 8:00 pm AEST May Meeting Time: 8:00 - 9:30 pm AEST Venue update: We are back in the 'big room' upstairs at the Golden Gate Hotel. We hope this will ease social distancing concerns and make the meeting more comfortable for everyone. We will still have dinner downstairs and no food is to be consumed upstairs. How to find us:  The Golden Gate Hotel is on the north western corner of the intersection of Clarendon and Coventry Streets in South Melbourne. Take the stairs up to level 1 - we'll be in the Coventry Room. Getting there: By car: Car parking is best on Coventry Street west of Clarendon Street. By tram: Route 12 (via Collins Street), Stop 127 (York Street, then walk south) or Stop 128 (Dorcas Street, then walk north). Meals available: Join us for a dinner from 6:00 pm on the ground floor of the Golden Gate Hotel before the AGM and the monthly meeting begins upstairs in the Coventry Room at 7:00 pm - the menu can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there! If you are unable to attend the 2023 AGM and May public meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here:

Join us for the 2023 Annual General Meeting of the Space Association of Australia Inc. (Registration No. A0000295B). The 2023 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of members of the Space Association of Australia (the Association), will be held in the Coventry Room, Golden Gate Hotel, 238 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne, Victoria on Monday, 22 May 2023 from 7.00 pm (AEST). Financial members of the Association are entitled to vote in the AGM and stand for election to the Committee at that meeting. The May Public Meeting, Skylab: 50 years since America's first space station, will follow the AGM.   Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:00 pm AEST Annual General Meeting: 7:00 - 8:00 pm AEST May Public Meeting: 8:00 - 9:00 pm AEST If you are unable to attend the 2023 Annual General Meeting or the May Public Meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here:

Join us for the April 2023 meeting of the Space Association of Australia – all welcome!  Date: Monday, 24 April 2023 Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:00 pm AEST Meeting Time: 7:00 - 9:00 pm AEST Venue: Golden Gate Hotel, 238 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne Venue update: We are back in the 'big room' upstairs at the Golden Gate Hotel. We hope this will ease any social distancing concerns and make the meeting more comfortable for everyone. We will still have dinner downstairs and no food is to be consumed upstairs. How to find us:  The Golden Gate Hotel is on the north western corner of the intersection of Clarendon and Coventry Streets in South Melbourne. Take the stairs up to level 1 - we'll be in the Coventry Room. Getting there: By car: Car parking is best in Coventry Street west of Clarendon Street. By tram: Route 12 (via Collins Street), Stop 127 (York Street, then walk south) or Stop 128 (Dorcas Street, then walk north). Meals available: Join us for a meal from 6:00 pm on the ground floor of the Golden Gate Hotel before the meeting begins upstairs in the Coventry Room at 7:00 pm - the menu can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there! If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here:

Your SAA Committee has been in discussion over recent months (and years) with regard to the average age of members of the Space Association of Australia getting older, and how that trend affects the ongoing viability of the Association. Despite the multiple efforts to attract and retain new and younger members, this has largely been unsuccessful. We have been successful in recruiting new members around various special events, only to see a number of non-renewals in the following year. On the other hand, while the in-person meeting attendance has declined post COVID, (to an average attendance of around 12 to 14 at our Golden Gate Hotel meetings) with an occasional increase for guest speakers, etc to 20+, our actual long-term financial membership average seems to hover around 50 (today’s number is 48). This means that ~50 people do value and enjoy what we do, be it our meetings (live and virtual), the radio show (live and podcasts), YouTube channel etc., which means all our efforts are not for little or nothing. Personally, I get a great deal of satisfaction out of creating and presenting SAA and Australian Space News each month and plan to do so as long as I am able, but it is a lot of work. For an illustration of what goes on behind the scenes, some of the work done by your SAA committee members: Monthly meetings • Arranging & coordinating speakers • Presentation content research & presentation (a very large effort) • Audio / Visual setup, monitoring & tear-down for remote experience (another very large effort) • YouTube editing & uploads Weekly radio show • Interviews • Production • Weekly podcast • Editing & uploads Special events • Development, organisation, content, administration (logistics and financial) and delivery. SAA General • Treasurer • Membership and SAA administration • Social media administration. We suggest that it is now time to create some kind of succession plan for these roles and tasks. Would someone like to step into a permanent, temporary or occasional role (e.g. bimonthly, etc)? Due to the average age (and ageing) demographic of our members, should we start to contemplate winding up the SAA at some point? Perhaps triggered by some metric (membership number down to say less than 10 or other?), whether this be in the short, medium or long term? Future directions? • Our members are getting older • Fewer make the trip to meet in person • The committee members are getting older • A number of the presenters are getting burnt out • What happens if current volunteers are no longer willing or able to continue? The Committee has decided to hold a members-only Zoom meeting, on Monday, April 17 from 8 pm, to discuss these matters, gather thoughts and suggestions, and possible directions. We believe that this is the ideal time, in the lead-up to the AGM, which is now scheduled for May 22, 2023. Zoom meeting details are as follows: Space Association of Australia Inc. is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Topic: SAA - Future Directions Zoom Meeting Time: Apr 17, 2023, 20:00 (AEST) Australia/Melbourne Join Zoom Meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82157211765?pwd=akd1TU1mdWI4dGg3NGkwOU45UXM5UT09 Meeting ID: 821 5721 1765 Passcode: 091327 Dial by your location: +61 2 8015 6011 +61 3 7018 2005 +61 7 3185 3730 +61 8 6119 3900 +61 8 7150 1149 We intend to record the meeting (with participant approval), and upload to our YouTube channel as ‘unlisted’. In case you are unable to attend, and would like to see the discussion, simply make contact and we will send you the link. We look forward to seeing you on the 17th! Best regards, Peter Aylward President - Space Association of Australia Inc. space.asn.au meetup.com/AusSpaceNet/

Join us for the March 2023 meeting of the Space Association of Australia – all welcome!  Date: Monday, 27 March 2023 Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:00 pm AEDT Meeting Time: 7:00 - 9:00 pm AEDT Venue: Golden Gate Hotel, 238 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne Venue update: We are back in the 'big room' upstairs at the Golden Gate Hotel. We hope this will ease any social distancing concerns and make the meeting more comfortable for everyone. We will still have dinner downstairs and no food is to be consumed upstairs. How to find us:  The Golden Gate Hotel is on the north western corner of the intersection of Clarendon and Coventry Streets in South Melbourne. Take the stairs up to level 1 - we'll be in the Coventry Room. Getting there: By car: Car parking is best in Coventry Street west of Clarendon Street. By tram: Route 12 (via Collins Street), Stop 127 (York Street, then walk south) or Stop 128 (Dorcas Street, then walk north). Meals available: Join us for a meal from 6:00 pm on the ground floor of the Golden Gate Hotel before the meeting begins upstairs in the Coventry Room at 7:00 pm - the menu can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there! If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here:

Join us for the February 2023 meeting of the Space Association of Australia – all welcome!  Date: Monday, 27 February 2023 Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:00 pm AEDT Meeting Time: 7:00 - 9:00 pm AEDT Venue: Golden Gate Hotel, 238 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne Venue update: We are back in the 'big room' upstairs at the Golden Gate Hotel. We hope this will ease any social distancing concerns and make the meeting more comfortable for everyone. We will still have dinner downstairs and no food is to be consumed upstairs. How to find us:  The Golden Gate Hotel is on the north western corner of the intersection of Clarendon and Coventry Streets in South Melbourne. Take the stairs up to level 1 - we'll be in the Coventry Room. Getting there: By car: Car parking is best in Coventry Street west of Clarendon Street. By tram: Route 12 (via Collins Street), Stop 127 (York Street, then walk south) or Stop 128 (Dorcas Street, then walk north). Meals available: Join us for a meal from 6:00 pm on the ground floor of the Golden Gate Hotel before the meeting begins upstairs in the Coventry Room at 7:00 pm - the menu can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there! If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here:

Join us for the January 2023 meeting of the Space Association of Australia – all welcome!  Date: Monday, 23 January 2023 Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:00 pm AEDT Meeting Time: 7:00 - 9:30 pm AEDT Venue: Golden Gate Hotel, 238 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne Venue update: We are back in the 'big room' upstairs at the Golden Gate Hotel. We hope this will ease any social distancing concerns and make the meeting more comfortable for everyone. We will still have dinner downstairs and no food is to be consumed upstairs. How to find us:  The Golden Gate Hotel is on the north western corner of the intersection of Clarendon and Coventry Streets in South Melbourne. Take the stairs up to level 1 - we'll be in the Coventry Room. Getting there: By car: Car parking is best in Coventry Street west of Clarendon Street. By tram: Route 12 (via Collins Street), Stop 127 (York Street, then walk south) or Stop 128 (Dorcas Street, then walk north). Meals available: Join us for a meal from 6:00 pm on the ground floor of the Golden Gate Hotel before the meeting begins upstairs in the Coventry Room at 7:00 pm - the menu can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there! If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here:

Join us for the final meeting of the Space Association of Australia for 2022 – Social Night and Apollo 17 – all welcome! Date: Monday, 12 December 2022 Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:30 pm AEDT Meeting Time: 7:30 - 9:30 pm AEDT (note different start time) Venue: Golden Gate Hotel, 238 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne Venue update: We are now back in the 'big room' upstairs at the Golden Gate Hotel. We hope this will ease any social distancing concerns and make the meeting more comfortable for everyone. How to find us:  The Golden Gate Hotel is on the north-western corner of the intersection of Clarendon and Coventry Streets in South Melbourne. Take the stairs up to level 1 - we'll be in the Coventry Room. Getting there: By car: Car parking is best on Coventry Street west of Clarendon Street. By tram: Route 12 (via Collins Street), Stop 127 (York Street, then walk south) or Stop 128 (Dorcas Street, then walk north). Meals available: Join us for a meal from 6:00 pm upstairs in the Coventry Room followed by the meeting at 7:30 pm - the menu can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there!  If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here:

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the end of the Apollo Lunar Landing Program, culminating in the mission of Apollo 17 (December 7–19, 1972). It was the final mission of NASA’s Apollo program, the most recent time humans have set foot on the Moon or travelled beyond low Earth orbit. Commander Gene Cernan and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt walked on the Moon, while Command Module Pilot Ronald Evans orbited above. To commemorate this historic event, and to round off our Apollo 50th celebrations, the Space Association of Australia in partnership with the Sun Theatre is hosting a special afternoon event — Apollo 17: Sunset on the Apollo Lunar Landing Program. Date: Saturday, 10 December 2022 Time: 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm AEDT Venue: Sun Theatre, 8 Ballarat Street, Yarraville, Victoria To book tickets just follow this link: Apollo 17 event tickets   This will be a one-off Melbourne event, the Sun Theatre will be exclusively screening a magnificent Apollo 17 documentary that uses NASA high-definition archival footage, mission audio and some wonderful astronaut interviews. Along with a short live presentation telling the story of Australia’s critical contribution to NASA’s “greatest adventure”, this documentary film chronicles the culmination of one of the greatest moments in mankind’s history. Hear first-hand testimonials and dialogue from the incredible men who walked on the moon. Incredible footage and photos give a unique and beautiful experience of their data collection process and journey home. If you were at our 2019 Apollo 11 or 2020 Apollo 13 special events, you will love this! Seating is very limited, so book now, bring your friends and relive history. Come dressed in your best 60’s gear to go into the running for our best-dressed prize too. We look forward to seeing you on Saturday, December 10, be quick as we have booked a small cinema which has very limited seating. Financial members of the Space Association of Australia are eligible for a discount, please check your email. To book tickets just follow this link: Apollo 17 event tickets Depending on the weather and circumstances, you might even see a rocket launch!!!

Join us for the November 2022 meeting of the Space Association of Australia – all welcome!  Date: Monday, 28 November 2022 Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:00 pm AEDT Meeting Time: 7:00 - 9:30 pm AEDT Venue: Golden Gate Hotel, 238 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne Venue update: We are now back in the 'big room' upstairs at the Golden Gate Hotel. We hope this will ease any social distancing concerns and make the meeting more comfortable for everyone. We will still have dinner downstairs and no food is to be consumed upstairs. How to find us:  The Golden Gate Hotel is on the north-western corner of the intersection of Clarendon and Coventry Streets in South Melbourne. Take the stairs up to level 1 - we'll be in the Coventry Room. Getting there: By car: Car parking is best in Coventry Street west of Clarendon Street. By tram: Route 12 (via Collins Street), Stop 127 (York Street, then walk south) or Stop 128 (Dorcas Street, then walk north). Meals available: Join us for a meal from 6:00 pm on the ground floor of the Golden Gate Hotel before the meeting begins upstairs in the Coventry Room at 7:00 pm - the menu can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there! If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here: Saber Astronautics recently signed a deal with private spaceflight leader Axiom Space, Inc. to create an Australian presence on the International Space Station (ISS) and future Axiom Station. Saber Astronautics will develop the first formal program to enable Australians and Australian industry to, via Axiom, access the Station’s orbiting microgravity laboratory and develop a new generation of space-developed products for human health, materials, electronics, cleantech, and more. Silent Auction: The Space Association has received a donation of books, magazines, photographs and other space memorabilia. So, just for a bit of fun and maybe to help you pick up (or offload) an item of space treasure, we propose to run a silent auction on the night, with no minimum bids. A silent auction is an auction held without an auctioneer. Bidders write their name, contact number and bid amount and, at about 9.00 pm, all bids cease and the deals are done! The following items are available for auction:

Join us for the October 2022 meeting of the Space Association of Australia – all welcome!  Date: Monday, 24 October 2022 Meal Time: 6:00 - 7:00 pm AEDT Meeting Time: 7:00 - 9:30 pm AEDT Venue: Golden Gate Hotel, 238 Clarendon Street, South Melbourne Venue update: We are now back in the 'big room' upstairs at the Golden Gate Hotel. We hope this will ease any social distancing concerns and make the meeting more comfortable for everyone. We will still have dinner downstairs and no food is to be consumed upstairs. The Golden Gate Hotel is a COVID-compliant venue! How to find us:  The Golden Gate Hotel is on the north-western corner of the intersection of Clarendon and Coventry Streets in South Melbourne. Take the stairs up to level 1 - we'll be in the Coventry Room. Getting there: By car: Car parking is best in Coventry Street west of Clarendon Street. By tram: Route 12 (via Collins Street), Stop 127 (York Street, then walk south) or Stop 128 (Dorcas Street, then walk north). Meals available: Join us for a meal from 6:00 pm on the ground floor of the Golden Gate Hotel before the meeting begins upstairs in the Coventry Room at 7:00 pm - the menu can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there! If you are unable to attend the meeting in person, please register to join us remotely via Zoom here: Glen Nagle Outreach and Visitor Centre Manager Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex Since 2002, Glen Nagle has been the Education and Public Outreach Manager at the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex (CDSCC); a part of NASA's Deep Space Network. He manages the Complex’s Visitor Centre and promotes space exploration to the 70,000 visitors it attracts each year to view its exhibitions and learn more about the giant antenna dishes that provide two-way contact with dozens of robotic spacecraft exploring the Solar System and beyond.