Gilmour boys count down to first space launch
Gold Coast-headquartered Gilmour Space Technologies is counting down to its maiden flight of its Eris rocket.
The launch window for Eris Test Flight 1 opens today (Thursday) at the company’s purpose-built Bowen Orbital Spaceport at the Abbot Point State Development Area in North Queensland.
If successful, it would be the first ever launch of an Australian designed and built rocket. It would also mean that Australia would become one of about a dozen countries in the world to launch a rocket into space.
Founded in 2015 by brothers Adam and James Gilmour, the company has been working towards the first launch for nearly 10 years.
Eris is a three-stage rocket powered by a hybrid rocket engine. It is about the same height as a 7-storey building and at lift-off weighs 34 tonnes – equal to about 17 average sized cars.
The rocket is fuelled by uses a proprietary hybrid-propellant technology that the company says is safer and cheaper than traditional liquid- and solid-fuelled rockets.
The Australian Space Agency has given the company the green light for the launch, with the launch window between 7.30am and 5.30pm today (Thursday).
The company said that given the unpredictable nature of first rocket launches, spectators were not encouraged to watch TestFlight1.
“There is a high likelihood of delays or scrubs (e.g., due to weather conditions, unforeseen technical issues), which could last hours, days, or even weeks, making visitor planning extremely challenging,’’ the company said.
Gilmour Space Technologies successfully test launched a hybrid rocket in 2016 and two years later in 2018 the company secured a deal to work with NASA on various space research, development and education initiatives.
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