Space
South Korea
Space launch site(s)
Naro Space Center (South Jeolla province) (2025)
Space agency/agencies
The Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA), which was founded in 2024, and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), established in 1989 and formerly the national space agency of South Korea, are set to operate in 2025.
Space program overview
Korea's space initiative is characterized by ambitious goals, emphasizing the development of satellites, satellite launch vehicles (SLVs), and probes intended for interplanetary exploration. The nation has formulated a comprehensive space strategy, engaging in the manufacture and operation of various satellites, which encompass communication, remote sensing (RS), scientific, and multifunctional capabilities. Additionally, it produces and launches SLVs, and is in the process of developing vehicles for interplanetary missions, including orbital probes and landers. Korea actively collaborates within international frameworks, partnering with numerous foreign space agencies and industries, such as those from Australia, the European Space Agency (ESA), specific ESA member nations (notably France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK), as well as India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Peru, Russia, the UAE, and the USA. The country boasts a vibrant commercial space sector as of 2025.
Key space-program milestones
1992 - The inaugural domestically produced technology-demonstrator satellite, KITSAT-1, was launched aboard a European rocket.
1993-1998 - The first single-stage sounding rocket, KSR-1, and the first two-stage sounding rocket, KSR-2, were successfully launched.
1999 - The first domestically constructed multi-purpose satellite, KOMPSAT-1, also known as Arirang-1, was launched by the United States.
2008 - The first South Korean astronaut traveled to space aboard the International Space Station.
2013 - The initial successful satellite launch of the two-stage Korean Space Launch Vehicle-I (KSLV-I), also referred to as Naro.
2021 - The first launch of the three-stage KSLV-II, known as Nuri, took place; additionally, South Korea signed the US-led Artemis Accords concerning space and lunar exploration.
2022 - The first successful mission to put satellites into orbit using the KSLV-II/Nuri occurred; the domestically developed lunar orbiter, Danuri, successfully entered the Moon's orbit; the development of the Korea Positioning System (KPS) satellite navigation network commenced.
2024 - The third successful launch of the Nuri SLV resulted in the placement of eight small satellites into orbit, which included a remote sensing satellite, NexSat-2, equipped with radar imaging technology.