Manned Moon Bases In 19705?

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32221, 13 February 1970, Page 14

Manned Moon Bases In 19705?

The United States would probably have bases manned by men on the moon by the end of the 19705. said Professor F. I. Ordway, head of the science and technology application division of the University of Alabama Research Institute, in Christchurch yesterday. Professor Ordway said that the cutting of funds to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration programme by the United States Government could cause delays and much of the development would depend on where the money was allocated Initially a good part of the funds would probably be used for earth-oriented space research with scientists, or., automatic devices, studying the earth’s geology, hydrology. meteorology and oceanography from orbiting laboratories. Professor Ordway, who has just spent several weeks in the Antarctic, is the author of a number of books on space. His latest. “Dividends From Space. ” due out in six months, is a study of the ap-

plication of space science and technology to the earth. His recent visit to the Ant- ! arctic had been extremely useful, he said. “1 looked at the analogy between Antarctic exploration, development, management and logistics in relation to the lunar base programme which we hope to get going when we have the money. “We want to extend the period that scientists can stay on the lunar surface. It is very likely that lunar orbit vehicles will use shuttle craft to carry scientific parties to i and from the moon’s surface Then we have to provide lunar roving vehicles which will enable the scientists to move out to distances of say 25 miles from their base.” said Professor Ordway. Professor Ordway said he would like to go into space. “After all. I have either written, edited or collaborated on! about 25 books on a variety of aspects of space science." In some ways he already has been to the moon. Fori two years Professor Ordwaywas a technical adviser to Stanley Kubrick during the making of the film, “Space Odyssey 2001,” in Britain “For me, that film was a fascinating project. It was just as if we were working

in the regular space programme back in the States' and it was a real scientific exercise,” he said. Some of the ideas from Professor Ordway’s book, “Intelligence in the Universe,” were incorporated in the film. “It should be borne in mind that what we were suggesting in that movie was not science fiction—apart from the last third of it, anyway—but science fact. Everything in it up to then was predictable, according to today’s research." One of the film's early

scenes involved monkeys and some critics suggested that the producer had at last discovered the missing link. Professor Ordway said that small actors from London were used to make the monkey scenes more realistic. One of the world’s leading anthropologists, Mr Louis Leakey, and his son Robert, advised the actors on animal movement and habits. Professor Ordway has coli laborated for a number of years with Dr Werner Von Braun, now the fourth man in the N.A.S.A. hierarchy.