First Aussie-made and launched rocket gets approval

An Australian company has been given first-of-its-kind approval to launch a rocket out of a small Queensland town.

The Australian government has given approval for the first commercial goods-carrying rocket to launch from our shores.

Private firm Gilmour Space received approval in November to launch its 23-metre rocket from North Queensland.

The ticket to launch means the first orbital test flight of an Australian-made rocket from Australian soil will likely take place early next year.

Founded by brothers on the Gold Coast, Gilmour Space has 300 Australian companies in its wider supply chain and 200 employees.

Should Gilmour Space go ahead with the launch, the rocket will take off from North Queensland. Picture: Supplied

An Australian launch permit is needed by law to launch from Australian soil to an altitude of more than 100 kilometres.

The vehicle to be launched is called Eris 1. It is a small orbital launch vehicle, which can carry a 300kg payload to low-Earth orbit. It measures 23m and weighs 34t when it takes off.

Gilmour Space chief executive Adam Gilmour said “With this green light, we will soon attempt the first orbital test flight of an Australian-made rocket from Australian soil”.

“Our team is assessing the conditions of the permit and will advise on the anticipated launch date for Eris TestFlight1 in the coming weeks.”

Adam and James Gilmour are leading figures in Australia’s space industry. Picture: Supplied

Eris 1 is a three-part rocket, and will need to hit 7.9km/second to reach orbit.

In May the company received a permit to use its Bowen Orbital Spaceport in Queensland.

Awaiting this latest launch permit, Gilmour carried out a dress rehearsal on Eris 1 in September. The entire procedure ran down to T-10 seconds and uncovered only minor issues.

As part of the dress rehearsal, all propellant tanks and high-pressure gas vessels were successfully filled. Autonomous tank pressure systems were verified, and all 16 thrusters were tested, and 40 technicians conducted all the other ground operations and logistic steps.

Originally published as First Aussie-made and launched rocket gets approval