Korea to conduct full-fledged solid-fuel space rocket launch in 2025

Agency for Defense Development test-launches a solid-fuel rocket from a water-borne platform off Taean, in this March 30 file photo. Korea is seeking to conduct a full-fledged solid-fuel space rocket launch in 2025, a government researcher said Monday. Yonhap

Korea is seeking to conduct a full-fledged solid-fuel space rocket launch in 2025, a government researcher said Monday, following its major performance test last week.

The country is aiming to launch the rocket to place a 500-kilogram experimental satellite into a low Earth orbit at an altitude of 500 kilometers by the target year, according to the official affiliated with the defense ministry.

"We are aiming for the full-fledged launch in 2025 from the Naro Space Center in Goheung," the official told reporters on condition of anonymity, referring to the launch site, 473 kilometers south of Seoul. "But prior to that, we might need one or two more capability tests."

Last week, the state-run Agency for Defense Development (ADD) test-launched a space vehicle from a water-borne platform off Taean, 150 kilometers southwest of Seoul, to confirm capabilities for fairing separation, upper-stage attitude control and other features.

The test was part of the country's efforts to secure capabilities to independently launch and run military satellites to bolster its space-based surveillance and reconnaissance activities.

For the planned 2025 launch, the country is expected to craft a four-stage rocket ― consisting of three solid-fuel rockets and the last-stage liquid-fuel rocket ― to put a small satellite into orbit.

"The key objective of the satellite is to observe the Earth. This can be used for both military and civilian sectors," the official said.

The official, however, dismissed speculation that Korea may be trying to accelerate its rocket development with a focus on sharpening its missile capabilities to counter North Korea's recent series of missile launches including the firing of an intercontinental ballistic missile in March.

"The ADD just happened to be the main developer of the solid-fuel rocket," the official said. "The agency has a role as a key provider of related technologies and its main goal is to transfer them to the civilian sector." (Yonhap)

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