Watch live: Ireland's first-ever satellite blasts off into space from California

Members of University College Dublin's EIRSAT-1 team ahead of their departure to California for the launch of Ireland's first-ever satellite. Picture: Andres Poveda

After more than six years of research, design, building and testing, Ireland's first-ever satellite is being launched into space. 

The launch of EIRSAT-1 (Educational Irish Research Satellite 1), developed by a team from University College Dublin (UCD) in the framework of the European Space Agency's (ESA) academy educational programme, takes place at 6pm this evening.