The South Korean domestically developed Nuri launch vehicle placed 15 satellites into orbit during its fifth launch, including five that will become part of the country’s first domestically launched micro-satellite constellation, the country’s space agency said. Yonhap reports, UNN writes.
Details
The 200-ton Nuri rocket lifted off from the Naro Space Center in Goheung, about 400 kilometers south of Seoul, at 12:25 and completed its flight 20 minutes later.
The payload consists of five New-space Earth Observation Satellite Constellation for National Safety (NEONSAT) microsatellites and 10 CubeSats.
Nuri successfully separated its first and second stages, after which it released the satellites at an altitude of approximately 575 kilometers.
The five NEONSAT satellites — Nos. 2–6, each weighing less than 100 kilograms — separated at intervals of 35 to 40 seconds. Meanwhile, Nuri’s upper stage rotated approximately 45 degrees between each separation to prevent collisions. The 10 CubeSats were launched in pairs at 10-second intervals.
"The Nuri rocket reached its planned orbit according to schedule," said Oh Tae-seok, administrator of the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA), adding that the launch team is conducting a detailed analysis to confirm the successful deployment of the satellites.
After deploying all 15 satellites, Nuri performed a collision-avoidance maneuver and released its remaining fuel, completing its flight. The rocket will remain in orbit before eventually entering Earth’s atmosphere and burning up.
The Korea Aerospace Research Institute will track the flight from ground facilities in South Korea and Palau in the western Pacific Ocean.
The fifth flight marked Nuri’s first attempt to sequentially place several primary satellites into orbit intended to carry out the same mission.
Each NEONSAT weighs less than 100 kilograms and is equipped with an electro-optical camera capable of distinguishing objects measuring at least 1 meter in black-and-white images and at least 4 meters in color images.
The satellites will monitor the Korean Peninsula and surrounding areas for national security and natural disaster response purposes.
The NEONSAT constellation will eventually consist of 10 satellites. Five more will be launched on Nuri’s sixth flight, scheduled for next year, allowing the constellation to be completed.
Once fully operational, the constellation will be able to obtain images of the Korean Peninsula more than three times a day and reimage the same area within 24 hours.