Developing a 100-ton Class Rocket Engine Surpassing Nuriho

Ministry of Science and ICT Announces 2022 Space Challenge Project

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] The government plans to develop a high-performance space launch vehicle with a thrust of over 100 tons per engine, surpassing Nuriho, to independently carry out lunar landing probe launches and the Korean Positioning System (KPS).

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced that it will promote the 2022 "Space Challenge Project" with this content. As part of the "Future Core Technology Preemption Project," the ministry will secure preliminary technologies such as the design, manufacturing technology, and development of key components for a high-performance liquid rocket engine with 100-ton-class thrust, which will serve as the foundation for future next-generation space launch vehicle development.

A total budget of 12 billion KRW, including 4.5 billion KRW this year and 7.5 billion KRW next year, will be supported for development through the Korea Aerospace Research Institute. Additionally, the preliminary developed technologies will be linked to the next-generation space launch vehicle project to successfully secure follow-up launch vehicle and engine technologies after Nuriho.

Currently, Nuriho is designed to produce 300 tons of thrust by combining four 75-ton-class engines. However, its actual payload capacity is only 1.5 tons, which is enough to place one medium-sized satellite into low Earth orbit. Developing a 100-ton-class engine is expected to significantly increase payload capacity, enabling the capability to send lunar landing probes weighing several tons to the moon.

Kwon Hyun-jun, Director of the Large-scale Public Research Policy Division at the Ministry of Science and ICT, said, "The Space Challenge Project is a representative space technology development project aimed at securing technologies that can lead the future space industry after 2030." He added, "In the new space era centered on market competition, we plan to promote interdisciplinary convergence and support challenging and innovative research to lead space development. We will actively support the successful preliminary development of high-performance liquid rocket engines to complete large-scale space transportation tasks such as lunar landers and KPS with domestic capabilities."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.