A Roscommon Scientist is part of a group set to make history this evening with the launch of Ireland's first satellite.
EIRESAT 1 will be launched by the Falcon 9 rocket this evening from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Local Physicist Gabriel Finneran has been part of the team at the UCD Space Science Group who have developed and built the satellite from scratch.
The students of the group have worked with the European Space Agency's 'Fly Your Satellite' programme, receiving expert training and guidance on satelitte development and management.
The South Roscommon Scientist has been working on testing the satellite to ensure it can survive the extreme conditions found in low Earth Orbit.
EIRESAT 1 will contain three payloads, including a gamma ray detector, a thermo-material experiment and computer programme which is set to be tested in orbit.
Speaking to Let's Talk, Gabriel says that the launch is the culmination of 6 years work by the Space team in UCD:
You can check out the Shannonside FM Facebook page this evening for a link to a live stream of the launch.
