Irish firms reach for the stars

In a month where much of the nation’s attention has focused on election politics and the arrival of winter storms, raising our gaze heavenwards provides a far more enticing prospect.

When the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Solar Orbiter spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral last week on a mission to the sun, it offered a vision of the future — and an emerging industry in which Ireland is destined to play a crucial role.