Gilmour Space is about to launch its Eris rocket – this time for real! We have a date. The launch window opens March 15.
Just to clarify, the delays have generally been out of their control. There have been quite a few regulatory hurdles to overcome, not least being that this is the first time the Australian Space Agency has issued a license for orbital launch. But now the rocket is ready to go, and the spaceport ready to go. Let’s do this!
The last orbital launch from Australia was the Prospero satellite on a Black Arrow rocket from Woomera in 1971. That was a UK built satellite and rocket that was testing technology for satellite communications. Eris is Australian from the ground up.
I have to note here that the PR department is very much managing expectations. We've been told that ‘scrubbed launches are normal’, ‘the first launch is always the hardest’, and (my personal favourite) ‘success at this point is almost unheard of’. Forget all that, we want to see Eris fly! We want Gilmour to be the SpaceX of the southern hemisphere. I’m betting on them being successful.
