A temporary airspace restriction has been put in place in Co Laois as rockets are launched in Emo as part of a student competition.
The launches are part of the national final of the CanSat Ireland competition, a STEM event that sees students compete to create miniature satellites the size of soft drink cans that are flown on rockets.
Teams of school students compete to design, build and test a mini-satellite, or CanSat, to give them their first practical experience of a real space project.
The CanSats are deployed at a height of 350 metres before descending under parachutes.
They perform scientific experiments as prepared by the teams and receive data from the mini-satellites via radio transmitters as they descend.
The competition is run by the European Space Education Resource Office (ESERO) and Science Foundation Ireland, with Munster Technological University (MTU) Blackrock Castle Observatory acting as coordinators.
The CanSat competition is initially run regionally at technological universities across the country. This year's finalists are from Westmeath, Kerry, Cork and Dublin.
The schools include Marist College, Athlone Community College, Mercy Mounthawk School Tralee, Presentation Brothers College, and Ratoath College.
The students are primarily in transition year, but some are fifth and sixth year pupils.
To facilitate the launches, the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) issued a flight restriction notice for the Emo area.
The safety measure was taken as the rockets can reach an altitude of 350m.
Organisers said it was unlikely a commercial aircraft would have to worry about such a low ceiling height rocket.
"Safety is always paramount with these events, and regulations are in place for the safety of everyone involved. This is particularly relevant in our case given the nearby airstrip in Portlaoise."
The temporary restriction on aircraft and rockets, including drones, was in place from 10am to 7pm today and will be in effect during the same time period tomorrow.
In its safety notice, the IAA said the Temporary Restricted Area is; "to support a planned small civilian rocket launch whilst ensuring the safety of air traffic operating in the vicinity of Emo, Co Laois in the period cited."
The competition has two parts - the launch today and team presentations of students missions tomorrow, with the winners being announced shortly afterwards.
