South Korea Adds the Finishing Touch to Becoming a 'World's Top 7 Space Power' [Nuriho 2nd Launch]

Second Launch Scheduled for the 15th, Issues Improved and Corrections Completed
Performance Verification Satellite-Model to Reach 700km Orbit 'Success'
Significance of Securing Independent Technology and Means to Join International Space Development Competition

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] South Korea is making the "finishing touch" to join the ranks of space powers in the era of "New Space." On the 15th, the Korean independent space launch vehicle "Nuriho" will conduct its second launch for final completion. If successful, South Korea will become the seventh country in the world to possess a medium-to-large space launch vehicle capable of sending practical satellites weighing over 1 ton into space. Notably, South Korea will have independently developed and possessed all the necessary technologies for design, manufacturing, testing, and launch operations, firmly establishing itself as a genuine space power.

According to the Ministry of Science and ICT on the 2nd, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) will conduct the second launch of Nuriho at the Naro Space Center in Naro Island, Goheung-gun, Jeollanam-do on the 15th. Earlier, on the 25th of last month, the government held the "Nuriho Launch Management Committee" to comprehensively review the technical readiness and optimal launch conditions and finalized the launch date. If weather conditions are unfavorable, the backup schedule is set from the 16th to the 23rd of this month. Currently, Nuriho is undergoing the payload integration of the third-stage performance verification satellite. After improving the issues revealed during the first launch in October last year, the assembly of the first and second stages has been completed. On the 19th of last month, 11 organizations including the government, local governments, and military and police conducted a final comprehensive safety inspection drill.

◇ What is Nuriho?

Nuriho is South Korea's first independently developed space launch vehicle, developed since 2010 with a total investment of approximately 1.9572 trillion KRW. Unlike the Naroho, which was successfully launched in 2013 but whose core first stage was manufactured by Russia and thus not domestically produced, Nuriho, while referencing Russian engines, independently designed, manufactured, and tested all components including the 75-ton class liquid engine, main body, fuel tanks, and launch pad, achieving full domestic production. It has a total length of 47.2 meters and weighs 200 tons, carrying 56.5 tons of fuel and 126 tons of oxidizer. It is capable of placing a 1.5-ton payload into low Earth orbit (600?800 km). The first stage consists of four 75-ton class liquid engines, the second stage has one 75-ton class liquid engine, and the third stage is equipped with one 7-ton class liquid engine.

On October 21 last year, the first test launch achieved most objectives such as separation of each stage and fairing and reaching the target orbit of 700 km. However, the final goal of inserting the mock satellite into orbit failed, leaving it a "partial success." This second launch is the final test of the first Nuriho project, but over the next four years, four more launches will be conducted to produce and launch four additional vehicles to secure safety and reliability. Additionally, to catch up with global trends such as SpaceX, plans are being considered to invest 2 trillion KRW to upgrade to an advanced high-performance rocket that is reusable and uses clean fuel.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

◇ What is different about the second launch?

During the first launch, the third stage’s 7-ton class liquid engine shut down about 46 seconds earlier than expected, failing to provide thrust at the final moment and causing failure to reach the target orbit for the satellite mock-up. Subsequent investigations revealed that a crack in the oxidizer tank of the third stage engine caused fuel leakage. The root cause was a faulty helium tank fixing device that came loose during flight. As a result, the second launch schedule was postponed by about a month from mid-last month. After about two months of root cause analysis, KARI began redesign and verification of parts in January. During this process, the oxidizer tank design was changed to a fixed support type to reinforce the structure of the first and second stages. Verification was conducted by submerging the tanks in liquid nitrogen to check for issues. Particularly, it was difficult to disassemble and repair the already assembled third stage. Ko Jeong-hwan, head of KARI’s Korean Launch Vehicle Development Project, explained, "We had to open the oxidizer tank lid and have a person enter to replace parts. It was a complicated task because there were many other components inside, but all replacement and reassembly work was completed by the end of April."

Unlike the first launch, which carried only a satellite mock-up, the second launch will place a performance verification satellite including four CubeSats and the satellite mock-up into orbit together. The performance verification satellite, specially made to test Nuriho’s performance, weighs about 200 kg, and the satellite mock-up weighs 1.3 tons. When Nuriho’s third stage reaches an altitude of 700 km, the performance verification satellite will separate first, followed by the satellite mock-up. If the vehicle maintains a speed of 7.5 km/s until separation and the separation is successful, Nuriho’s mission will be considered a success. The performance verification satellite will maintain continuous communication with ground stations for up to two hours after separation, and four hours later, the Korean Antarctic research station at King Sejong Station will verify the satellite’s attitude information. If smooth communication with the ground station is maintained the next day, a more detailed status check of the satellite will be conducted. One week after launch, the performance verification satellite will deploy the four CubeSats onboard.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

◇ Securing independent space development capabilities

The world is now in the New Space era. Both nations and private sectors are fiercely competing in space development to build ultra-high-speed communication networks, solve resource and energy shortages, ensure national security, and utilize Earth observation data. For example, the United States has signed the Artemis Accords with about ten countries including South Korea to explore lunar resources and build the Lunar Gateway, while China and Russia are jointly conducting lunar exploration in response. Private companies such as SpaceX are actively industrializing space development through space tourism, space mining targeting the Moon and asteroids, Mars exploration, Earth observation data industries, space internet and 6G ultra-high-speed communication networks, and ultra-precise satellite navigation systems (GPS). South Korea entered space development with the launch of the Our Star-1 satellite in the 1990s and has developed capabilities in satellite manufacturing and operation, but its independent space development capacity has been insufficient until now. The success of this second Nuriho launch would mean South Korea has secured the minimum means to participate in the international space development competition.

Director Ko said, "Launching a vehicle made by our country from our own launch site into orbit means we have the capability to deploy anything we make into space," adding, "This means South Korea will have an independent means to access space, and all 370,000 parts must operate normally." He continued, "Since so many parts operate in extreme environments, mistakes can happen anytime, but we are doing our best to complete the final preparations. Although we cannot yet say success or failure, we are hopeful for a good outcome."

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