OTC Dish

The 'Big Dish' is a Carnarvon landmark. Take a drive out to the site of this massive satellite dish and marvel at the 29.5 metre diameter of the reflector. You can visit the site and enjoy the panoramic views of Carnarvon and the surrounding plantations. The OTC Dish Base is located on Brown's Range; it was the site of Australia's first earth station for satellite tracking and communications, and one of just eight in the world. It was an integral part of the communications network for the Apollo Moon Programme and was used for tracking Halley's Comet. Open for 21 years from 1966 it was closed down in 1987; the dish was of major importance to global communications. The Carnarvon Space and Technology Museum is now open on site to retell these and many more amazing stories from this era of Space Exploration. Carnarvon is a comfortable nine hour drive from Perth and is the southernmost point of the Ningaloo Reef.