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Communication established with six of 13 satellites after Nuri launch, including primary payload

Published: 27 Nov. 2025, 18:34

The homegrown Nuri rocket lifts off during its fourth launch at the Naro Space Center in Goheung County, South Jeolla, on Nov. 27. [NEWS1]

Six of the 13 satellites launched into space early Thursday aboard a homegrown Nuri rocket established communication with ground stations later in the morning.

The Korea AeroSpace Administration said that the primary payload, the next-generation medium-sized satellite No. 3, successfully entered its target orbit after lifting off from the Naro Space Center in Goheung County, South Jeolla, at 1:13 a.m. It made two-way contact with the ground station at King Sejong Station in Antarctica at 1:55 a.m.

By noon, No. 3 had completed two rounds of communication with the Korea Aerospace Research Institute ground station and 12 rounds with overseas stations in Antarctica and Svalbard, Norway.

During Thursday’s communications, the agency confirmed the functions of the 577.5-kilogram satellite’s main components. After about two months of payload checks and mission preparation, No. 3 will begin its yearlong mission in a sun-synchronous orbit roughly 600 kilometers above Earth, circling the planet about 15 times a day.

No. 3 carries out three primary missions. Using the Rokits wide-field aurora and airglow observation camera, it will monitor space auroras and atmospheric light phenomena to study space weather. It will also observe irregularities in the ionosphere, located roughly 60 to 1,000 kilometers above Earth, using the IAMMAP plasma and magnetic field instrument.

Its final mission is to test bio 3-D printing and three-dimensional cell culture using a bio cabinet. The agency said this will help verify core space technologies developed in Korea, boost domestic space science research and strengthen the competitiveness of Korean satellite platforms.

Of the 12 cube satellites weighing between 2 and 17 kilograms that were launched alongside No. 3, five have established contact so far. They include Etrisat from the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute; ZAC-003 and ZAC-004 from Cosmoworks; Inharosat from Inha University; and K-Hero from KAIST.

Researchers at the Korea Aerospace Research Institute’s satellite control room in Daejeon operate the control system for the Next-Generation Small Satellite No. 3 on Nov. 27. [KOREA AEROSPACE RESEARCH INSTITUTE]

Etrisat will research low-orbit satellite IoT data communication for marine climate forecasting, a technology considered essential for sixth-generation mobile communication.

ZAC-003 and ZAC-004 will acquire ground observation images using optical payloads and make the imagery available for civilian use in areas such as geography and environmental monitoring. Inharosat, the world’s first satellite equipped with rollable solar cell modules, will verify the feasibility of rollable solar cells for small satellites and their performance in space environments.

K-Hero carries a Hall thruster designed with artificial intelligence. Hall thrusters generate thrust through electric fields and are used in swarm satellites, very-low-orbit satellites and deep-space probes.

Several of the remaining seven cube satellites are preparing for initial contact, while others will continue attempting communication on a scheduled basis. The satellites still awaiting contact include Spiron from Sejong University, equipped with a low-orbit navigation signal transmitter and a marine plastic observation camera; Cosmic from Uzuro Tech, designed to test space debris removal technologies; and Bicheon from Space Lintec, aimed at verifying the space manufacturing potential of protein-based drugs.

Other satellites awaiting communication include Purset 01 from Quaternion, E3 Tester 1 from the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, SNU Glite 3 from Seoul National University and Sejong 4 from Hancom InSpace. The aerospace agency noted that each satellite communicates with its own ground station, meaning contact times vary.

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The agency will release a comprehensive update on the cube satellites on Dec. 2.

Korea Aerospace Administration Commissioner Yoon Young-bin said the success of the fourth Nuri launch “provides performance verification opportunities for 13 satellites and is expected to strengthen the capabilities of Korea’s satellite industry.”

Yoon added that preparations for the fifth and sixth launches will continue to ensure smooth performance verification opportunities for the satellites to be carried aboard.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JEONG YONG-HWAN [[email protected]]