Australian company Gilmour Space has received permission from the authorities for its first orbital launch. It may take place before the end of this year.
Gilmour Space was founded in 2013. As many other new space companies, it declared the creation of a low-cost small carrier designed to launch small cargo into low-Earth orbit as its main task.
Since its founding, the company has performed several suborbital tests, as well as a number of burns of the engines that will be installed on its Eris orbiter. It is a three-stage rocket designed to launch up to 215 kg of cargo into a 500-kilometer sun-synchronous orbit and up to 305 kg into a 500-kilometer equatorial orbit. The peculiarity of the carrier is that the first two stages use hybrid engines with liquid oxidizer and solid propellant, which is printed on a 3D printer. The upper stage is equipped with a liquid engine.
By the autumn of 2024, Gilmour Space reached the finish line. A dress rehearsal was held in September, during which the Eris rocket was fueled and went through a countdown that was stopped 10 seconds before liftoff. This allowed engineers to troubleshoot problems in the rocket and ground systems, such as two faulty valves, as well as make minor software changes.
The last important milestone on the way to the first flight of Eris was the permission. It was issued by the Australian Space Agency on November 5. The permit includes a number of conditions that must be met prior to launch and also requires a 30-day notification period before launch.
Eris will be launched from a launch facility in northern Queensland called Bowen Orbital Spaceport. Gilmour Space says they want to attempt a launch in December before the Christmas holidays. If that turns out to be impossible, then it will be moved to early 2025.
We previously reported on Skyrora’s plans to launch an orbital launch from the UK in the spring of 2025.
Provided by Spacenews
