A NASA structure that played a role in tracking space missions from the 1960s until the 1990s is getting a new lease of life as a place where wonders much closer to home can be viewed.The artefact is a small and unusual landmark in the traffic-free oasis of quiet wilderness at the far end of Cooper’s Island where Bermudians and visitors alike can now go to enjoy peace and tranquility and simply relax or observe nature.This Saturday public access to the nature reserve will be expanded with the official opening of around one acre of land on the outer fringes of the nature reserve that was previously out-of-bounds but which have now been cleared of derelict buildings and replanted with native and endemic species.The lonely pyramid-shaped mount at one of the remotest points of Cooper’s Island once supported a radar tracking station that monitored the progress of spacecraft lifting off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral.It is now one of the last remaining pieces of infrastructure on the peninsula, which was abandoned by NASA in the late 1990s and has been transformed, bit by bit, into a significant nature reserve.Jeremy Madeiros, conservation officer at the Department of Conservation Services, said of the radar mount: “It was one of the critical parts of the space programme, helping to track everything from the Gemini missions all the way to the space shuttle launches.“We discovered it was hollow inside and we opened the door. We are going to have placards there with information on humpback whales and cahows. It’s a great place to see humpback whales, which can swim nearby as it is so close to the reef line and the open sea.”It is also a perfect spot to view birds such as longtails and cahows. Mr Madeiros pointed out the area is internationally recognised for its importance to bird species, notably the rare cahow, with the entire world population living within one kilometre of Nonsuch Island the nature reserve just off the coast of Cooper’s Island. Around half of all longtails that visit Bermuda each year also nest in the area.Volunteers from HSBC Bermuda worked to clear the land, replant suitable shrubs and trees and install 23 man-made longtail nests.“This is a really significant area and it was important to protect it. HSBC jumped in with volunteers, without whom it really would not have been possible to move ahead with the project the way we have. It’s amazing what you can do if you have 30 volunteers for a few days. This has allowed us to open these areas ahead of time, without them it might have taken a few more years,” said Mr Madeiros.Decrepit buildings and rusting underground corrugated iron ammunition bunkers have been among the structures bulldozed and removed the ammunition bunkers pre-dated the NASA facility as the land was previously used by the US military.“There is a lot here that will be of interest to Bermudians and visitors. It is an ongoing project, like Nonsuch Island, although Cooper’s Island is five times bigger. There will be no vehicles in the area so people can get away from everyday noise and walk and picnic in an area that’s totally natural,” said Mr Madeiros.