Antenna No. 1 at Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station
ANTENNA NO. 1 AT GOONHILLY SATELLITE EARTH STATION
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II*
- List Entry Number:
- 1350341
- Date first listed:
- 26-Mar-2003
- List Entry Name:
- Antenna No. 1 at Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station
- Statutory Address:
- ANTENNA NO. 1 AT GOONHILLY SATELLITE EARTH STATION
Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II*
- List Entry Number:
- 1350341
- Date first listed:
- 26-Mar-2003
- Date of most recent amendment:
- 19-Dec-2008
- List Entry Name:
- Antenna No. 1 at Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station
- Statutory Address 1:
- ANTENNA NO. 1 AT GOONHILLY SATELLITE EARTH STATION
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- ANTENNA NO. 1 AT GOONHILLY SATELLITE EARTH STATION
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- Cornwall (Unitary Authority)
- Parish:
- St. Martin-in-Meneage
- National Grid Reference:
- SW 72723 21303
Details
MAWGAN IN MENEAGE
SW72SW GOONHILLY DOWNS 1843/2/10015 ANTENNA NO. 1 AT GOONHILLY SATELLITE E 26-MAR-03 ARTH STATION (Formerly listed as: GOONHILLY DOWNS BRITISH TELECOM EARTH/SATELLITE STATIO N NO 1)
II* Satellite Communication Antenna. Designed c.1958, built 1960-2 by Husband and Company (engineers, design consultant Mr Kington) and the General Post Office, whose scientists included John Taylor and John Bray. Gordon Smith, assisted by John Thompson, developed the tracking system. Reinforced concrete base building, frames and portal beam supporting an 85 foot diameter dish (updated in 1963) and counterweights connected by a steel lattice backing structure. The structure was designed to be wholly mobile, capable of moving 360 degrees horizontally and 90 degrees vertically, though this mobility is now rarely needed as satellites are fixed in geostationary orbits. The diameter of the framed stainless steel dish is some 30m and the whole dynamic structure on twin bipods is mounted on roller bearings on a circular concrete base.
History: Goonhilly is the oldest satellite earth station in England and is rightly recognised as the birthplace of satellite communication. In 1962, the first antenna (Arthur) was built to receive and send signals to the first active communication satellite known as Telstar. Following the success of this venture more and more satellites were launched and further antennae erected as global communication mushroomed. Goonhilly was always at the leading edge of developing satellite communication technology and by 2004 a total of 64 antennae were present on the site, making it the largest in the world. In September 2006, following a business review, the decision was taken to scale down activities at Goonhilly and transfer them to Madley in Herefordshire. Antenna No. 1 was listed Grade II on the 26th March 2003 and its owners intend to retain it as part of their operations at Goonhilly.
Sources: : BT, Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station Experience, 2005. Dalton Warner Davis, Report Containing Representations on the Proposed English Heritage Listing Assessment at Goonhilly Earth Station, 2008. www.cornishworldmagazine.co.uk/content/view/42/58/ Accessed 15th April 2008 www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2006/dec/27/news.uknews Accessed 15th April 2008 www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/satcomhistory.html Accessed 22.04.2008
REASONS FOR DESIGNATION Antenna No. 1 at Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station is designated at Grade II*, for the following principal reasons: * It was built to receive the first live transatlantic television pictures * It formed the successful prototype for all satellite receiving antennae * The success of the antenna led to the highly sophisticated modern global communication network upon which much of C21 life revolves * The antenna possesses a dramatic visual quality enhanced by its heathland setting
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
- Legacy System number:
- 490151
- Legacy System:
- LBS
Sources
Books and journals
BT, , Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station Experience, (2005)
Other
Warner Davis, Dalton , Report Containing Representations on the Proposed English Heritage Listing Assessment at Goonhilly Earth Station, (2008)
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 19-Jun-2026 at 13:52:34.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
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