The countdown is on for a landmark moment in Australian space history, with the first-ever attempt to launch an Australian-made rocket into orbit from Australian soil set to take place this week.
Gilmour Space Technologies’ Eris Test Flight 1 is targeting lift-off from Thursday morning, with the launch window opening at the company’s Bowen Orbital Spaceport in North Queensland. This mission marks the first sovereign-made orbital launch vehicle attempt in the nation’s history — and the first orbital launch from Australia in over 50 years.
Officials from the Australian Space Agency’s Office of the Space Regulator are on-site alongside Gilmour staff to oversee the launch preparations.
Standing 23 metres tall and weighing 34 tonnes, the Eris rocket is designed to carry payloads of up to 300 kilograms into Low Earth Orbit. Powered by a unique hybrid propulsion system, the three-stage Eris Block 1 is the result of nearly a decade of development by Gilmour Space, a venture-backed company founded by Queensland brothers in 2015.
Gilmour Space Technologies started in Queensland as just two brothers, and they now employ almost 200 people. And this mission is the culmination of several major milestones for Gilmour Space.
In 2016, it launched Australia’s first privately developed hybrid rocket using 3D printed fuel. In 2020, it secured a contract to launch a 35-kilogram spacecraft for Space Machines Company — the largest payload announced by an Australian company at the time. In 2022, a launch agreement was signed with Commercial Space Technologies Ltd, offering up to 50 kilograms payload capacity on Eris Block 1. In May 2023, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese unveiled the Eris rocket as Australia’s first locally developed orbital launch vehicle. In March 2024, the Bowen Orbital Spaceport became Australia’s first licensed orbital launch facility. And in November 2024, Gilmour Space received the nation’s first orbital launch permit.
Located within the Abbot Point State Development Area, the Bowen launch site is Australia’s first licensed commercial orbital spaceport. Supported by the Juru traditional owners, the spaceport is hailed as a bridge from “Country to Sky”.
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