South Korean space program

South Korean space program

First Launch of the Nuri
First flight	4 June 1993 (KARI KSR-1)

The South Korean space program began in earnest in the 1980s when research on space development began. Korea Aerospace Research Institute was established in October 1989, and the Korea AeroSpace Administration was established in May 2024.^[1]

The medium-lift launch vehicle Nuri is specialized for low-Earth orbit satellites weighing 1.9 t or less, and the KSLV-III, currently under development and scheduled for its first launch in 2030, is specialized for inserting large satellites into Earth orbit and launching lunar or Mars probes.^[2]

Based on the various data sent back by the lunar probe Danuri, which has been on a mission since 2022, a map of the moon were created. Danuri and the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute also exchanged messages through the space internet payload.^[3]