Lecture on world's first digital satellite shot into space

The National Space Museum, located at Aviodrome Aviation Museum, is hosting a lecture on Saturday, June 4, about a special Dutch project: the world's first Dutch-developed fully digital satellite shot into space, the ANS.

The ANS, which stands for Astronomical Dutch Satellite was launched in 1974. It is the world's first digital art moon. The National Space Museum has been displaying the history of the ANS in a permanent exhibit since March. Zeholy Pronk, president of the National Space Museum Foundation, says of this satellite, "NASA was impressed by this technology. Yet the story about it fell into oblivion. With the lecture on the film and the new showcase in the National Space Museum exhibit, we are bringing this satellite back to the attention of our visitors."

Gaining experience
The Netherlands receives few orders in the European space industry in the 1960s. Fokker and Philips therefore decide to build their own satellite to gain experience in the space industry. The Dutch government supports the project and in 1974 the ANS is launched for free by NASA to study the universe with telescopes from the universities of Utrecht and Groningen. It makes spectacular astronomical discoveries as a result.

The film
The film "ANS-Dutch First Space Adventure" answers questions such as who are the builders of the ANS and what makes it so special. The film consists of unique original film footage and interviews with the long-time creators. The documentary was premiered on March 25, 2022, in the presence of the many people who helped build and operate the satellite.

Presenters
The lecture will be given by Zeholy Pronk and Ronald Klompe. They are both associated with the National Space Museum and were also involved in the construction of the new showcase for the Astronomical Dutch Satellite. Ronald will talk about the composition of the objects in this new showcase and Zeholy will talk about the organization of this project together with Beeldlijn Groningen and documentary makers at Loods Media in Groningen.

After the lecture, it is possible to join a tour of the exhibition. The lecture will take place at 10:30 a.m. and the hall will open at 10 a.m. It is only possible to attend the lecture after registering through the National Space Museum website and paying the cost of participation. The lecture costs seven euros per person for adults and for children up to 11 years old, friends of the NRM and for NVR members the cost is 3.50 euros per person.

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