South Korean satellites are now in orbit for the first time ever. The satellite is said to be fully homegrown.

(Photo : Daniel Bernard on Unsplash)

South Korea is Entering the Space Exploration Field with the Help of Its First-Ever Fully Homegrown Rocket

The rocket is called Nuri and lifted off on June 21 at 3:00 AM EDT at the Naro Space Center. The rocket will eventually deploy six different payloads into Earth's orbit, as per Reuters.

According to the story by Space, one of the payloads launched was a 358-pound test satellite. The test satellite was successful in making contact with a certain base station located in Antarctica after it had reached orbit.

Initial Liftoff Failed to Place the Dummy Payload Into Orbit as Planned

The other satellites were reportedly a 1.3-ton dummy satellite as well as four different tiny cubesats that were all developed by university researchers. The recent liftoff was reportedly part of a second orbital mission for the three-stage Nuri, which stands at 47.2 meters tall.

The first liftoff reportedly took place in October 2021, and it first failed to place a dummy payload into orbit as planned. This happened because the rocket's third stage shut down prematurely during the incident.

The Launch of the Rocket was Considered a Huge Success for South Korea

The launch's success was noted as a huge success for the country of South Korea, which is already planning to launch its very own constellation of navigation satellites. The country is also planning to send probes to the moon, among other goals for space.

Yoon Suk-yeol, the President of South Korea, said that the road to space has finally opened up for the country. The President noted that the launch was a product of 30 long years of many challenges.

Country Successfully Launched a Rocket in 2013 in Partnership with Russia

The President also gave a statement saying, "from now on, the dreams and hopes of our people and our youth will extend into space." South Korea has been able to launch a satellite into orbit some time in the past.

In 2013, the country was able to launch Naro, but it wasn't a project that was solely the work of South Korea. The Naro project was accomplished with the joint help of Russia, while Nuri, on the other hand, is said to be fully homegrown. 

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The Nuri Launch Opens Up a Lot of Potential for Space for South Korea

The satellite was reportedly developed by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute and holds a huge accomplishment for South Korea. A video of the Nuri launch was uploaded to YouTube, showing how the rocket took off.

Although South Korea isn't that known for its efforts in space, with the success of the Nuri launch, things could change for the country. As of press time, South Korea still holds many goals regarding its advancement into space.

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Written by Urian B.