2nd Phase of Korean Rocket Development Project to Start in August

The development project of a Korean rocket or launch vehicle will start its second phase in August. In this second phase, a total of 802 billion won (US$727.44 million) will be invested by 2018, with the aim of developing a 75-ton liquid-fuel engine, the core technology of a Korean rocket.

The Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (MSIP) will complete the first phase of the development project and evaluation by July, and start the second phase in August. 

The goal of the project is to develop the engine and refine it through test launches. Korea’s three-stage rocket consists of four 75-ton liquid-fuel engines in the first stage, one 75-ton liquid-fuel engine in the second stage, and one 7-ton liquid-fuel engine in the third stage. The development of the 75-ton engine used in the first and second stages is a vital step on the road to the success of Korea’s rocket development project.  

In the second stage of the project, the MSIP will complete the detailed design process of the rocket and engine by carrying out development tests on the 75-ton liquid-fuel engine and static firing tests. It will also construct testing facilities for the successful qualification of the propulsion engine system performance of one to three stages, and develop the rocket system, including the launch pad, rocket assembly, and fire safety control system. 

This year, the MSIP will assemble the initial model of the 75-ton engines and conduct a test launch after the start of the second phase of the project. Before that, it should successfully finish the first phase of the project, including the completion of testing facilities, construction of the propulsion engines, and be evaluated by July.

Korea's rocket development is a large R&D project, which is expected to cost a total of 1.9572 trillion won (US$1.78 billion). In development from 2010 to 2021, the project aims to develop a 300-ton three-stage space rocket that is able to carry a payload, a 1.5-ton commercial satellite up to low altitude orbit between 600 and 800 kilometers, and to secure space rocket technology.  Once the technical development is completed, the program will assemble a three-stage satellite rocket model using a test satellite and carry out a total of two test launches in 2019 and 2020.