This is the second post from my trip to the Isle of Wight, if you haven’t read Part One you can find it here: Photo Report Isle of Wight March 2025 Part 1, Columbine Shed – UK Space Launcher Forum
It’s taken me a while to get round to writing this, as often happens life gets in the way. In part one we talked about the Columbine Shed and it’s part in the history of Black Arrow, Black Knight and Black Prince. Once the hardware was assembled in the Columbine Shed it was transported to the Needles Battery, and that’s where we are heading next.
The Needles Battery at the western point of the island is comprised of two parts, the old battery which dates back to Victorian times, and the new battery which is a little more contemporary, dating from 1893. The New Battery was built further up the coast after erosion threatened the Old Battery. It was here that the Saunders Roe team leased the site for testing of the rockets, and also the Prospero satellite. The Needles is now owned and managed by the National Trust.
The closest point accessible by car or public transport is the Needles Attraction which is a mile or so from the battery itself. I chose to walk from Tennyson Down, where there is a NT car park, past the Tennyson memorial and along the south coast of the island following the coastal path. The walk is just under 3 miles on a relatively flat clearly marked route.
Approaching from the east, you can’t easily miss the remains of the area known by the Saunders Roe team as “The Promenade”, a wide concrete path allowing access for people and vehicles to the test stands. The stands are all placed slightly downhill of the crest, on the south edge of the battery.
When the site was decommissioned in 1975 following its sale to the National Trust the test gantries and related structures were all demolished. The metal parts of the structure were decaying, so all we see left today are the concrete components of the stands.
Site 1, looking east
Although the structures are mostly missing now, there is still evidence of activity. This photo of the site 1 test stand shows the carbonised surface of the flame trench. In the middle distance you can see the observation point with it’s small, square, reinforced windows. These would have provided a grandstand view of the test for personnel, as well as still and moving image cameras.
The image above of Test Post 1 shows a number of interesting features. Firstly the 5 pipes aligned just below the contemporary hand railing middle left would have supplied fuel to the rocket on the stand, plus control cables for the rocket and the ancillary equipment for the stand. The rusty square fittings at the base of the stand just above the flame trench would have been used to fix the steel frame for the test stand itself, anchoring it securely to the steel reinforced concrete. Downhill from the flame trench you can see a rectangular pool, which acted as a buffer for the water released by the sound and vibration suppression system.
The photo of Test Post 2 above gives a clearer view of the fuel and control feeds. To the right, the larger pipe would presumably have fed the water suppression system, designed to reduce damage to the test stand, as well as reducing vibration and noise. Most rocket stands have identical systems to prevent damage. It’s notable that the early test for the SpaceX Starship were conducted without such a suppression system, and not only was the test stand significantly damaged, debris was found up to a mile away causing damage to vehicles in a car park.
Heading west around the headland, over the hill past the Coast Guard Station you arrive at the location of New Battery, where the laboratories, meeting rooms and stores for the testing site were located.
There is a Rocket Exhibition located close to what would have been the recording room for the test site. Unfortunately on the day I visited, this was closed.
From this location, you can continue further round to the new battery, where you can visit the museum at the New and Old Battery.