Woomera Test Range

The RAAF Woomera Test Range is a weapons testing facility in South Australia. It is run by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). It covers and area of , and is the world's largest weapons test facility on land. The range is a restricted area, called the Woomera Prohibited Area. The airspace above it is also restricted, and is called the Woomera Restricted Airspace.

The range was originally set up as a place for the British to test missiles during World War II. The British asked to do weapons testing here (in the centre of Australia), because not many people lived there. A Commonwealth weapons design and test project, called the Australian-Anglo Joint Project, was signed in 1946. The range originally had an area of .

Between 1955 and 1963, the British ran a series of seven nuclear-weapon tests at Maralinga, then inside the range. The Joint Project ran until 1980, when the British withdrew from the program. The range is still used as a testing site by the Australian Defence Force. Access is leased to foreign militaries and private companies for their own testing of weapons.

It is named after the Dharuk word for a spear-thrower.

References

Other websites
Official website 

Category:Military of Australia
Category:Geography of South Australia