Text Fwd: S. Korea's 1st geostationary ocean-weather satellite placed into orbit

Yonhap News
SEOUL, June 27 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's first geostationary ocean-weather satellite has successfully reached Earth's orbit after being launched from Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, the government said Sunday.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said the Chollian communication, ocean and meteorological satellite (COMS) blasted off from French Guiana on an Ariane 5-ECA rocket at 6:41 a.m. (Korea Time) after encountering minor technical problems on Thursday and Friday that delayed the launch.

The Chollian successfully reached "geostationary transfer orbit" and separated from the second stage rocket roughly 32 minutes after takeoff at an altitude of little over 2,000 kilometers, the ministry in charge of the country's space program said.


It said the Dongara ground station in Australia established initial contact with the Chollian at 7:19 a.m., indicating that the satellite has reached a correct orbital path and its electrical, on-board equipment and flight position were all normal. Additional contacts are to be made with ground stations in Hawaii, Italy and Chile for around-the-clock communications uplink with COMS.

First communication with the state-run Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) -- in charge of the satellite -- is expected to take place 10 days after liftoff.

About 30 technicians from South Korea and France will be on hand to check the overall condition of the satellite and communications status at all times in the initial weeks of operations.

A series of tests will be conducted on its onboard equipment in the coming months with communications, maritime observation and weather services to be offered from late December.

The ministry said if there are no unforeseen problems, the satellite should start to deploy its solar panels and use its small booster rockets to reach stable orbital altitude of 36,000 kilometers in the next eight days.

It will be in a fixed orbit circling the equator at east longitude 128.2 degrees that can give 24-hour coverage over the Korean Peninsula.

Kim Young-shik, deputy minister of science and technology, said the successful launch of the Chollian marks a milestone in South Korea's space technology development and will positively affect everyday life.

The satellite was built in cooperation with France's EADS Astrium with South Korean engineers from the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) and the Korea Ocean Research and Development Institute playing a key role in its development, design and production. ETRI built the communications equipment for the satellite.

"The satellite is special because it can offer communication services as well as timely weather and oceanographic information that can benefit peoples' lives," the official said after the launch.

The 2,460-kilogram satellite is the world's first geostationary ocean monitoring satellite that is designed to give the country timely and accurate data in such areas as the movement of tide, ocean temperatures and environmental changes that can be used to better control maritime resources.

The Chollian also makes South Korea the seventh country after the United States, the European Union, Japan, China, India and Russia to operate an independent weather satellite and the 10th to build its own communications satellite.

The science ministry and KARI said the new satellite is designed to send weather and oceanographic data every 15 minutes and can reduce the interval to every 8 minutes in emergency situations such as when a typhoon is approaching the country. At present, Seoul gets its weather information from foreign satellites operated by Japan every 30 minutes, and less frequent data from a U.S. satellite.

Seoul spent more than 354.9 billion won (US$295.4 million) and took eight years to build the high-tech satellite that has a design life of roughly seven years.

The blastoff, meanwhile, was postponed several days because engineers from France's Arianespace SA, which built the rocket and is responsible for the launch, detected a "launch vehicle pressurization anomaly" prior to blastoff. The glitch was centered on the liquid fuel, cryogenic first stage booster that lifts the rocket and satellite payload into space.

Originally, the liftoff for the Ariane rocket was set for Thursday at 6:41 a.m., but was pushed back a full day, before being rescheduled for Sunday morning after Arianespace engineers fixed the problem.

yonngong@yna.co.kr

_____________________________________________________________

* Related articles

Yonhap News: Chronology of events leading to launch of S. Korea's ocean weather satellite
2010/06/27

Yonhap News: Chollian marks major leap in S. Korea's satellite program
2010/06/27

Text Fwd: Navy retrieves Naro rocket debris

Image source: Hankyoreh: 'Naro lifts off at the Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Jeolla, June 10.'　

Korea Times
06-11-2010 18:32
Navy retrieves Naro rocket debris
By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff reporter

The Korean navy Friday recovered what is believed to be debris from the Korea Space Launch Vehicle 1 (KSLV-1) that exploded shortly after liftoff, Thursday.

According to officials at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, two pieces of wreckage were retrieved in international waters, south of Jeju Island, and were brought to Korean and Russian experts for further inspection.

However, engineers at the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), the country's space agency, will have limited access to the recovered material, as the technology standard agreement (TSA) signed between Russia and Korea bans any technology transfer regarding their joint project.


* Related article

Hankyoreh
Posted on : Jun.11,2010 12:21 KST
Naro explodes shortly after takeoff Experts say the exhaustion of researchers and officials in order to expedite the rocket's launch may have led to careless mistakes

Some points that should be Noticed from the failed Naro Rocket launch

The Naro space rocket with the payload of a science satellite lifts off from the launch pad at the space center in Goheung, South Jeolla Province, Thursday evening. At right are three sequential shots taken from footage by television station KBS that show, from top, the rocket exploding. / Korea Times

* Image source: Jeju News, May 13, 2008 'Jeju tracking center'

* Image source: Global Security, 'Naro Space Center'

"The Naro Space Center is on 5 million square meters of reclaimed land on Naro Island in Goheung County, South Jeolla, about 485 kilometers south of Seoul. The spaceport, under the management of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, includes a launch pad, a control building, rocket assembly and test facilities, facilities for satellite control testing and assembly, electric power station, a space science museum and a landing field.

The construction of the Korea Space Center began in August 2003 with a budget of 315.5 billion won.As of November 2008, the Naro Space Center had already completed construction of the launch pad, the main control center, radar tracking stations and other facilities. Engineers were conducting autonomous tests of the facilities which were expected to be completed by the year's end. The first launch was originally planned for December 2008 but was postponed till 2Q, 2009. Once the facility becomes fully operational, Korea will be able to achieve its goal of building a satellite and rocket with local technology and launching it into space from its own launch center."

* Image source: hankyoreh on June 8, 2010

# According to the Korea Times regarding the failed rocket launch, on June 10, 2010,

"A number experts of also suggested that the country was fortunate to
avoid a disaster as ground control was unable to command the wayward
rocket to self-destruct with communications being out, which may have
led to shuddering consequences had debris crashed onto land."

"KARI later confirmed that the debris has fallen in the waters off the
southern coast of Jeju Island."

# The Jeju tracking station in the Korean bird-eye view in the Korean Hankyoreh newspaper on June 8, 2010

# More on Naro Space Center

__________________________________________________________
# Related blog

http://nobasestorieskorea.blogspot.com/2009/08/2_30.html

[영문 번역: Article Fwd] Why Don't Make Voice against the Rocket Naro?
Weekly Kyunghyang, Sept. 1, 2009
[인터뷰] 왜 나로호에 목소리 내지 않는가?, 위클리 경향, 2009년 9월 1일자 발간

Text Fwd: Space rocket to be launched as scheduled

Korea Times
Space rocket to be launched as scheduled
06-08-2010 10:27

The government decided Tuesday to go forward with the scheduled launch of its locally assembled space rocket after engineers corrected a problem in the electrical system.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) said the Naro-1 rocket will be launched on Wednesday as planned since the problem with the ground measurement system (GMS) has been corrected.

The system allows rocket controllers to determine the state of the rocket before it blasts off into space.

"A rocket control committee headed by Vice Science Minister Kim Jung-hyun, which met earlier in the day, opted to move forward with the launch since the problem has been fixed," a ministry official said.

Engineers on Monday detected abnormal signals from the GMS while the rocket was being connected to the erector arm on the launch pad.

After dissembling and checking the connectors on the electrical system, South Korean engineers said they had corrected the problem.

KARI, meanwhile, said that it will move forward with final systems checks starting at 11 a.m. to see if the rocket is ready for launch. The final approval for the blastoff is expected to be made Wednesday.

Text Fwd: Korea to Spend $1.3 Bil. on Next Rocket

Korea Times
09-29-2009 11:26
09-29-2009 21:29
Korea to Spend $1.3 Bil. on Next Rocket
By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter

South Korea will spend about 1.5 trillion won (about $1.3 billion) on its second generation space rocket, after the joint Russian-Korean-made first generation vehicle failed to deliver its payload satellite into orbit last month.

The Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), the country's space agency, expects to complete the development of the Korea Space Launch Vehicle II (KSLV-II) by 2017, when it is to blast off from the Naro Space Center in South Jeolla Province to send a 1.5-kilometer satellite into orbit.

The funding has been included in next year's budget, KARI officials said. The KSLV-II will be the successor of KSLV-1, which was launched at the Naro Space Center on Aug. 25.

Russia's Khrunichev State Space Science and Production Center provided technology for the Korean rocket project, and developed the first stage of the KSLV-1, including the rocket engine and liquid-fuel propulsion system.

KARI built the second-stage of the rocket that was designed to hold the satellite jointly developed by the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST).

Although the rocket reached its desired speed and height on its Aug. 25 launch, a malfunction of the KARI-built second stage prevented the satellite from being released properly. The satellite was likely burned and destroyed in the atmosphere as it crashed back to Earth.

The government is currently investigating technical problems related to the failure and will announce the results by the end of next month. The Khrunichev Center will prepare a second launch next May, and is also contracted for a third launch should the second attempt fail.

Although the KSLV-1 project garnered rapt attention, KSLV-II will represent a truer test of the ingenuity of Korea's rocket technology. KARI is planning to rely almost entirely on new technology to make the second rocket.

"Gaining experience on liquid-fuel engines from the KSLV-1 has been critical. We are close to completing a rocket engine with 75 tons of thrust, and we expect to improve on that," said a KARI official, who said that the KSLV-II will be about "90-percent homemade" in terms of components usage.

Unlike the two-stage KSLV-I, the KSLV-II will be a three-stage rocket measuring 50 meters in height and 3 meters in diameter. The first stage of the rocket will have four liquid-fuel rocket engines, each providing around 75 to 80 tons of thrust.

Another rocket engine with similar power will be installed on the second-stage of the rocket, while the third-stage, which will carry the satellite, will have a pressure-fed rocket engine generating about 5 tons of thrust.

The KSLV-II will be used to send a 1.5-kilogram satellite into a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of somewhere between 600 to 800 kilometers.

The 1.5 trillion won government funding will be spent on designing, building and testing the rocket systems, developing advanced rocket engines, constructing rocket testing facilities and launch equipment, and conducting flight tests.

thkim@koreatimes.co.kr

[영문 번역: Article Fwd] Why Don't Make Voice against the Rocket Naro?

* Below is the temporary English transaltion of the article in the photo. It is the interview with Bruce K. Gagnon, Secretary of the Global Network against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space(www.space4peace.org, space4peace.blogspot.com) by Mr. Jeong, Yong-In, reporter from the Weekly Kyunghyang. Its website version is here.

http://weekly.khan.co.kr/khnm.html?mode=view&code=116&artid=200908271140231

Through this article, Bruce Gagnon was selected as the 'Today's Figure' with the title, ' “ Today’s Figure, Secretary, Bruce Gagnon, ‘Why Don’t Make the Voice Against the Rocket Naro’” by the Daum website on Aug. 27, 2009. The second site recorded the demographics of the readers.

http://media.daum.net/?t__nil_news=title

http://issue.media.daum.net/society/people/who_view.html?cateid=&issueid=2734&photoid=&cpid=&newsId=20090827145222365&cp=weeklykh



Interview

“ Why Don’t [you] Make the Voice against
the Rocket, Naro?”

Bruce Gagnon, Secretary of the Global Network

against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space

Sept. 1, 2009 Weekly Kyunghyang, No. 840
Jeong, Yong-In, inqbus@kyunghyang.com


• photo captions

1. Bruce Gagnon, Secretary of the Global Network, interviewing with the Weekly Kyunghyang (photo by reporter, Kim, Suk-Ku(spelling?)

2. Bruce Gagnon, Secretary of the Global Network (third from the left) is having the denouncing statement at the press interview for the urge to stop the Ulchi Freedom Guardian training, sponsored by the SPARK, at the TANGO base, Seongnam, Kyunggi-do, on Aug. 17. (Yonhap News)


“ The South Koreans should ask themselves for what the rocket would be launched this time, whether it has only simply the good purpose as known to the public. Further, they have to ask what relationship the South Korean space program has with the space control & domination policies of the United States.

It is the ‘opinion’ by Bruce Gagnon, an United States peace activist on the launch of the rocket NARO (KSLV-1). He is in charge of the secretary of the Global Network against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space (afterward, Global Network). This international organization, affiliated by the 150 groups in the world was founded in 1992. In the South Korea, Solidarity for Peace And Reunification of Korea (SPARK) and the Peace Network have participated in it. Gagnon initiated the foundation of this organization and has worked on it.

He made a keynote speech, participating in the ‘International Conference against the Asia Pacific Missile Defense and End of Arms Race’ last April. His revisit this time for a week since Aug. 14 is after the speeches and symposiums upon the invitation of Mayor Akiba Tadadosi, Hiroshima, Japan. It was Aug. 18 that I interviewed him. A day before the launch of the rocket Naro was planned.

He said that, “It is surprising that there is almost none opinion claim even among the peace activists here” (Anyhow, the launch of the rocket Naro was stopped remaining seven minute 56 seconds for ‘the lack of software’) He claimed that we should clearly know that the rocket Naro have the military purpose such as carrying war and corporate profit. Military purpose of the rocket Naro? It has been a seldom known story. However, once researched, it is mentioned in some sites.

The Seoul sinmun [* meaning newspaper] reported on Aug. 19 that “ The Korean Aegis Destroyer Sejong, the Great carries the exercise to trace the orbit of the rocket Naro at the same time with the launch of the rocker Naro.” The newspaper predicted that “It would be a kind of an information war on the sea among the powerful countries near the vicinity of the Korean peninsula, which would check the Aegis system one another and try to detect the South Korean’s space development ability.” However, is it that the mission of the scientific technology satellite No. 2 is to measure the radiation energy of the earth and air/ overseas for minutes for two years, isn’t it?


The Unknown Military Purpose of the Rocket Naro

Does the opinion of the Secretary, Gagnon means the [satellite] has the dual purpose such as the military appropriation while it is claimed to have the peaceful use of the space on surface?

“ Yes. There are dual purposes in all the space plans by all the countries. I think there is a need to point out a hypocrisy here. There have been the blames against the North Korea when it launched the satellite and even the words of the interception of it. However, nobody blames the South Korea when it launches the rocket. This is really a hypocrisy. It should be mentioned that the military purpose is applied to the both.”

There is a difference. Hasn’t the process in case of the North Korea been secretly processed, has it? On the other hand, in the case of the rocket Naro, the process has been open. There has been the historical experience that the [South Korea’s] independent technology development of the [rocket] has been frustrated after its drive of it by the Park Jung-Hee regime because of the curb by the United States in the 70s, as in the case of the nuclear. Since then, the South Korea chose the way of the open development of it under the control of the United States.

“ That’s right. The United States tries to draw many of its alliance countries under its control. The space development of the South Korea and Japan is the one example. The Space Command in the United States boasts that the space industry project is the largest industry project in the history of the earth. Thus, it takes enormous cost and because the United States can not pay all that huge cost alone, it tries to hand over the economic burden to the other (countries). Despite that, the development process is under the total control of the United States.

Is the United States the center of the ‘Weaponization of Space?’ Was the old Soviet the same with the United states, having the space development race, for example, wasn’t it?

“ During the eight years of [President] Bill Clinton, eight years of [President] Bush and to the current administration of Barak Obama, the Russia and China have presented the resolution preventing the space weapons to the United Nations. Thus every year, these two countries have presented the new treaty on it to the General Assembly of the U. N. but only three countries have been opposing it. Do you know which countries they are?”

I don’t know.

The United States, Israel and the Micronesia. The reason that Micronesia opposes is because there is the U.S. launch base in the Kwajallen atoll. Those countries oppose it for the two reasons. The first is to control and dominate the space. The Second is to prevent the other countries’ use of access to space. If you go to the U.S. space command, there is the logo of master of space. In other words, it means who controls the space can control and dominate the earth.

Let’s return to the issue of Naro. Is the mission of the Naro for the scientific, peaceful purpose such as the measuring of air, isn’t it? You, Secretary’s words sound like the radical claim to oppose all the scientific technology such as the Luddite movement (machine destruction movement) in the 19th century.

“ I and the organization I am related to never oppose the technology in general. The organization, as its name opposes the weaponization and militarization of space. We watch the baseball game and sees the weathercast through satellite. Some of the people participating in our organization are famous scientists. Our core concern is to prevent the wars caused by the wrong use of technology.“


The Organization Widely Known for the Cassini Campaign

There are many organizations demanding anti-war. It could be thought to be far away from the issues in the reality to talk about the space weapon and war. Is there any religious background or relationship with it? For example, the Raelian often talks about the ‘space issue’ as well.

“ It is a rather moral, ethical question than the religious. We need to ask the moral, ethical question whether it is right to pay the enormous cost to it at the sacrifice of such as, healthcare, education and all the things that we can give to our next generations. During my 27 year works on this movement, I know that one can not well deal with the peace issues without dealing with the space issues. We need to inform people that the efforts of the abolishing the nuclear weapons are closely connected to the space issues.

Even though it is not known domestically, it is since the campaign related to the Cassini probe plan initiated by the NASA and the ESA[?] that the ‘Global Network’ has spread it name in the world . The Cassini probe plan, 1997 is the project to explore the Saturn and Titan, the Saturn’s satellite and to return back to earth. And the Global Network warned that plutonium was used in the Cassini space craft. As a result, the Cassini had to be changed with its original plan to orbit within 500mile from the earth to 500mile above it. It was the victory of campaign. During the trip to the Saturn, plutonium was not used as a fuel. It was only used for the maintenance of the electric facilities on board. However, Gagnon says the Cassini was like the ‘icebreaker’ or “Trojan horse’ . He recalls, “ The general public did not even know the Cassini spacecraft plan, and the NASA was telling them on it as it has only the pure scientific mission. Our job as activists was to reveal how the Cassini spacecraft had the deadly relationship with the nuclear industry. Even though it was not directly related to the military use of it, the Cassini campaign with the use of the nuclear power, was the opening gate to test its possibility .”

The military industry complex have announced that the nuclear power is the only solution for the strong propelling power for the long time space flight, and it is the claim of these grous that it has become the common sense while repeatedly injected the claim. Then why they make the matter of life and death to keep the expansion of the nuclear power?

“ The reason is that the nuclear industry thinks the space as the new market such as for the nuclear reactor, rocket and engine. They claim it to make the mining colony in the Moon and Mars in the long term. But the plutonium is the matter. According to the report of an energy related organization, plutonium has contaminated air, water and workers. We oppose it to move it to space.”

The Lee Myung Bak administration has recently gotten entangled as to announce the full participation of the PSI and postpone it upon the North Korea’s missile launch and nuclear tests. The experts are thinking that the PSI participation would be automatically linked to the participation in MD.

“ The MD issue is the core issue of the Global Network. The United States wants to deploy the Missile Defense system in many countries in the world. MD, despite its name, Missile Defense is not for the defense but for preemptive attack. For example, if Russia takes aim at the United States with 100 nuclear missiles, the limited Missile Defense system can not cover it. In other words, only through the preemptive attack, the MD can work.”

According to you, it means not defense but offense, then why did the people who drove it name it as defense ?

“ Because only by that, it could be sold. If you see the real content [of the MD], it is very expensive, provoking (the counter-part who is the target for attack) and the imperfect system. The PAC3 in the Asia Pacific is shown to be not only against the North Korea but also against the China. Last April, the United States Defense Secretary, Robert Gates, saying ‘ More Aegis Destroyers would be converted to be outfitted with the ballistic missile defense’ has had the significant remarks that ‘ It would help to counter the China.’.

The Progressive Front of the United States, Disappointed by the Stagnation of the Reform by Obama

The MD issue of the North East Asia has been long-time issue though. How is the case of Obama? Does he want to maintain the policy [of the predecessors] ? Was he elected by the support of many people, for the pledges such as the social reform , for example, health care and withdrawal of the troops from Iraq, wasn’t he?

“ Most of the progressive fronts have disappointed by all the issues he suggested. They think he betrayed them. Thus Obama is losing his supporters. The poll has become low. It is becoming more clear when you see the expansion of war in the Afghanistan. Obama will not be able to bring up the change(which was his election slogan) any more. To speak easily, if Bush is a ‘bad cowboy’, Obama is a ‘good cowboy’. The important point is that Obama is still supporting the military imperialism.”

If one looks at Gagnon’s blog or writings in the media, he often mentions the Korean examples. Last May, he submitted an open letter pointing out the injustice of the arrest of the PKAR members. Looking at his Korean trip schedule, even though there are public speeches or symposium in the PSPD & Peace Network, his participation in the various realities in Korea, such as the visit to the Pan-Korea committee on Yongan , participation in the press interview sponsored by the peace unification organization and visit to the Korean Confederation of the Trade Unions., is remarkable. It was curious how he has become concerned with the Korean issues. Is there any Korean among his relatives of his father and mother sides?

“ I was born in July 27, 1952. It is only a year before the signing of the Korea War Armistice Agreement. My father was in the air force during the Korean war. His hobbies were to take the photographs of the daily lives of the Korean people. I grew up looking at the photos. ” Once the supporter of the Republican as to act in the election movement for Nixon in his youth, his idea has become changed since his participation in the Vietnam war. (Currently he is the member of the Veteran’s for Peace, as well) Working at the [Florida] Coalition for Peace and Justice after working at the Farmers’ union at the Florida state, he initiated the ‘Global Network’. When asked whether there is any message to the Lee Myung Bak government, he shortly replied, “OUT”.

* Related blogs

http://space4peace.blogspot.com/2009/08/bits-and-things.html
Thursday, August 27, 2009
BITS OF THINGS

http://space4peace.blogspot.com/2009/08/south-korean-satellite-launch-fails.html
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
SOUTH KOREAN SATELLITE LAUNCH FAILS

Text Fwd: Fire test for S. Korea's first space rocket to be conducted next week

Yonhap News
Tech/Science 2009/07/24 19:27 KST Fire test for S. Korea's first space rocket to be conducted next week By Lee Joon-seung

SEOUL, July 24 (Yonhap) -- The critical fire test for South Korea's first space rocket will be conducted next week after delays caused by technical problems, the government said Friday.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said Russia's Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center sent an official letter notifying local authorities that the test date for the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 (KSLV-1) has been set for July 30. If the test can be conducted as planned, the rocket could be launched in August if weather conditions are favorable.

"A letter was sent to the Korea Aerospace Research Institute that it will conduct the hot fire test," an official said. Khrunichev is in charge of building the main booster rocket.

South Korea, with no experience in launching rockets, is working with Russia to acquire rocket technology and expertise that could allow it to send locally made space vehicles into orbit in the future.

Originally, Khrunichev planned to conduct the test on Monday, but called for a delay to upgrade the test control and evaluation programs needed for the experiment. This move affected the launch date, which had been set for next Thursday.

The rocket fire test is important because engineers will fill the rocket with fuel and oxidation compounds and ignite it to simulate an actual launch.

There are currently two KSLV-1 rockets. The one planned for launch was delivered to South Korea last month, while the other is used by Russian technicians to conduct various tests related to turbo pumps, the jet motor and fuel pipes. Russia said it has successfully conducted a so-called cold flow test on the first stage of the KSLV-1.

The ministry stressed that if all tests are conducted and there are no problems, South Korea's first space rocket can theoretically be launched 13-14 days after the "hot fire test" is conducted.

The rocket, developed at a cost of 502.5 billion won (US$403.7 million), stands 33m tall, has a diameter of just under 3m and weighs 140t. The first stage main booster rocket, made in Russia, has a thrust of 170t, while the smaller, second-stage indigenous rocket can generate 8t of thrust. The rocket is designed to deliver the 100kg satellite into orbit.

The government built the Naro Space Center, located 485km south of Seoul, to launch the KSLV-1 and future rockets.

yonngong@yna.co.kr

Text Fwd: [Editorial] Naro Center Will Be Home to Korea's Dreams of Space Exploration

* Image source/ description: Chosun Ilbo, June 13, 2009

‘Boys run in front of Korea's first space rocket during the completion ceremony of the Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Jeolla Province on Thursday. /Yonhap’

Note: The media here yesterday celebrated that the South Korea has become “only the 13th country in the world to possess its own space center” and that the “KSLV-I, the country's first space launch vehicle, will lift off from the Naro Space Center in July”. The most conservative right wing newspaper in Korea , Chosun Ilbo says “There are also plans to launch a lunar exploration satellite in 2020 and a lunar landing vehicle in 2025” .

[Editorial] Naro Center Will Be Home to Korea's Dreams of Space Exploration
June 13, 2009, The Chosun Ilbo

The Naro Space Center, embodying Korea's aspirations to explore space, was completed Thursday in Goheung, South Jeolla Province. Construction began eight and a half years ago in December of 2000, and its completion means Korea has become only the 13th country in the world to possess its own space center. KSLV-I, the country's first space launch vehicle, will lift off from the Naro Space Center in July, carrying the Science and Technology Satellite-2. If the satellite successfully enters orbit, Korea will become the 10th country in the world to achieve such a feat on its own, and mark Korea's first step towards becoming an advanced country in terms of space exploration.

Hyundai Heavy Industries and other domestic companies built the space center, based on a Russian blueprint, experiencing many problems on the way. Russia sent Korea the blueprint for the launch pad -- 21,631 A3 pages worth of information -- in March, 2007, four months later than promised. A further eight months were then spent changing the blueprint so that it met Korean specifications.

Russian experts said it would take at least 23 months to build a launch pad, even if their own technicians did it. However, Korea built it in just 19 months, while also developing 80 percent of the related technology on its own. The Russians were so impressed with Korea's skill in building the launch pad that KBTM, a Russian design company, has asked Korea to join a consortium building a new launch pad at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazhakstan. Naro is the crowning result of the sweat and passion of our researchers and technicians who worked away from their families and without holidays.

Space is the final frontier for the human race. The world's major powers, including the United States, Russia, Europe, China, Japan and India have set out to explore and tap into outer space not only for national pride but also for economic benefits and national security. The space industry encompasses a wide array of high technologies, ranging from electronics, machinery and chemistry to materials, and therefore has far reaching impacts for a country. In the course of building the Naro Space Center, Korean companies were able to acquire valuable know-how in ultraclean, high pressure and cryogenic technologies. The first space rocket KSLV-1 named Naro cost W502.5 billion (US$1=W1,253) to build, but its economic benefits are estimated to be worth W3 trillion.

The task facing Korea is to become able to build a space launch vehicle using 100 percent of its own technologies. With the KSLV-1, Russian scientists built the core propulsion system. But Korea now plans to build another launch rocket by 2018 using its own technologies. There are also plans to launch a lunar exploration satellite in 2020 and a lunar landing vehicle in 2025. The Naro Space Center is the very starting point from which all Korea's dreams of space exploration are being realized.

Copyright (c)2009 DIGITAL CHOSUN All rights reserved.

* Related site http://www.kari.re.kr/english/

* Relate articles

http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2009/05/11/2009051100300.html
Korea's 1st Space Rocket Named 'Naro'
:the 13th country in the world to have its own space launcher and .
May 11, 2009

http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2008/10/20/2008102061008.html
Korean Space Launch Vehicle Unveiled
Oct. 20, 2008 09:59 KST

Text Fwd: S. Korean Aerobatic Team to Debut T-50s

http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4067512&c=ASI&s=AIR
S. Korean Aerobatic Team to Debut T-50s
By JUNG SUNG-KI
Published: 30 Apr 2009 18:48


SEOUL - South Korean air force's Black Eagles acrobatic flight display team will re-debut with a fleet of eight T-50 Golden Eagle supersonic trainer jets at the international air show here in October, the service said April 30.

The team retired its Cessna A-37 Dragonflys after the 2009 Seoul Air Show.

The new T-50s will make the Black Eagles one of the few air force aerobatic teams to use indigenously designed and manufactured supersonic aircraft, the service said in a news release.

Since its 2006 arrival, the T-50, South Korea's first indigenous supersonic aircraft, has been the world's only high-performance supersonic trainer jet in production. State-funded Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) is the prime contractor, Lockheed Martin the principal subcontractor, assisting with development and international marketing.

The $25 million aircraft has a top speed of Mach 1.5.

The South Korean air force is buying 82 T-50s, including 50 advanced jet trainers and 22 TA-50 light armed aircraft.

In May 2010, the Black Eagles will receive 10 T-50Bs modified for aerobatics through the addition of smoke oil tanks, spray nozzles, switches, lights and other gear, according to the release.

The air force picked a jet-black color scheme crowned by an eagle design in a two-month contest that drew 260 entries, it said.

In this year's air show, renamed the Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition (Seoul ADEX 2009), the Black Eagles will perform aerial maneuvers both independently and jointly with the U.S. Thunderbirds acrobatic team of six F-16 aircraft, according to the release.

The weeklong event is expected to draw about 300 aerospace and defense firms from 300 countries worldwide, Air Force officials said.

The South Korean aerobatic flight display team was first established in October 1953 with four F-51 Mustangs after the three-year Korean War. The team operated until 1958, and a new team called the "Blue Sabres" was formed in 1962, flying four F-86 Sabre jet airplanes.

In 1966, the Black Eagles was organized and operated seven Northrop F-5A Freedom Fighter aircraft through 1978. The team was reformed in 1994 with the A-37s.

The Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS) program is ready to test a few components that soldiers may have in their hands by 2010.

© 2009, Army Times Publishing Company

Text fwd: North releases details of rocket’s flight path

* Image source/ caption*
same as the original article below

‘An official dealing with North Korea’s projected satellite launch looks at a map of the rocket’s potential drop zone at the Foreign Ministry in Seoul on March 13.’


http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_northkorea/344109.html

North releases details of rocket’s flight path Diplomatic and technical calculations are at play with the designated drop zone near Japan and not the U.S. Posted on : Mar.14,2009 11:49 KST

After the North notified the International Civil Aviation Organization and International Maritime Organization of its plans to launch a communications satellite early next month, it released the details of the multi-stage rocket’s flight path. According to Pyongyang, the first stage would first splash into East Sea, 650 kilometers away from the launch pad at Musudan-ri, with the second stage falling into the Pacific, 3,600 kilometers from the East Sea.

Missile experts and Seoul government officials say that the rocket that the North will launch on April 4-8 will fly for 125 seconds at an altitude of 50-60 kilometers before the first stage falls into the East Sea. The second stage is expected to fly at an altitude of 130-150 kilometers for 125 seconds before falling into the Pacific. The margin of error for the drop zone is 100-150 kilometers.

The rocket’s estimated flying range is much longer than that of the Kwangmyongsong-1, better known as the Taepodong-1, which the North launched in August 1998. The rocket’s first stage flew 253 kilometers before it hit the sea and the second stage fell 1,646 kilometers from the launch site.

The rocket to be launched next month is expected to have a longer flying range than the Kwangmyongsong-1 because it is larger in diameter and height and can carry a greater amount of fuel, a researcher at the Korea Aerospace Research Institute said.

Kwangmyongsong-1 was reportedly 28.1 meters long and weighed 19.9 tons. Sources say that the rocket to be launched next month will be over 40 meters long.

The rocket’s trajectory is largely determined based on scientific and technological conditions but the position of neighboring countries is also a factor. Generally, a rocket is launched eastward at an angle of 90 degrees in order to make the most of the earth’s rotation. In 1998, the North fired the Kwangmyongsong-1 at an angle of 86 degrees eastward between Sakhalin, Russia, and Hokkaido, Japan. At the time, the North explained that it had adjusted the firing angle for safety reasons, saying that if the rocket were launched at an angle of 90 degrees, it would spend more time over Japan and the second stage could fall into Japan’s territorial waters.

Based on the North’s announcement and explanations, the rocket launched next month will be launched at an angle of 90.5 degrees, meaning it will have a 0.5 degree westward tilt. This will give it a longer flight path over Japan, in comparison with the Kwangmyongsong-1. One aerospace expert said, “If the angle is adjusted to 86 degrees as it was with Kwangmyongsong-1, it is likely that the rocket’s second stage will fall into the Pacific Ocean off of Hawaii.” This indicates that Pyongyang has decided to avoid inciting the United States, choosing instead to risk criticism from Japan.

The South Korean government, meanwhile, is taking special precautions for airplane safety. The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs said that the rocket is expected to fall 90 kilometers away from the Kamchatka air route and 370 kilometers away from the Pacific route. “Airplanes using the Kamchatka route should take extra precautions, including the monitoring of wind directions. The Pacific route will be adjusted by the U.S. in charge of flight control to avoid the drop zone.”

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]

© 2006 The Hankyoreh Media Company.


* Related news*

http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=3988364&c=ASI&s=TOP
S. Korea Warns North of U.N. Action over Rocket Launch
By SIMON MARTIN, Agence France-Presse
Published: 13 Mar 09:35 EDT (13:35 GMT)

‘SEOUL, March 13, 2009 (AFP) - South Korea warned Friday of United Nations "countermeasures" after North Korea set dates for a satellite launch seen by Seoul and Washington as a disguised test of a missile which could reach Alaska.

U.S. President Barack Obama also spoke of the "risks" posed by Pyongyang's missile plans, while U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the launch "will threaten peace and security in the region."’

* Related Korean article*
http://www.tongilnews.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=83302