Goheung: South Korea's homegrown space rocket, Nuri, is set to lift off from Naro Space Center at 0:55 a.m. Thursday, aiming to deploy 13 satellites into orbit. The Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) confirmed the scheduled launch from the southern coastal village of Goheung, approximately 473 kilometers south of Seoul.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the 200-ton Nuri's positioning on the launchpad was completed by 11 a.m. on Wednesday. Pre-launch operations will begin 10 minutes before liftoff, with automatic suspension if issues are detected, as per KASA's protocols. The launch time was determined after reviewing meteorological and space conditions, with fuel and oxidizer injection starting at 10:10 p.m. and set to conclude by 11:55 p.m.

This launch marks the fourth attempt of the Nuri rocket, with Hanwha Aerospace Co. overseeing the assembly process. The previous launch in May 2023 successfully placed a next-generation small satellite and seven cube satellites into orbit. In this mission, Nuri aims to achieve an altitude of 600 km, carrying the CAS500-3 medium-sized satellite and 12 cube satellites developed locally.

The CAS500-3, developed by Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd., weighs 512 kilograms and will conduct space science research, including measuring space magnetic fields and plasma, and observing auroras. The total load of satellites and equipment is around 960 kg, significantly heavier than the previous launch's 500 kg.

KASA Administrator Yoon Young-bin emphasized the importance of this launch, noting the challenges due to its nighttime timing for aurora observations. Yoon also acknowledged a previous delay in delivering Nuri to the launchpad caused by weather conditions but assured that all inspections are proceeding smoothly. The mission will conclude with a collision-avoidance maneuver and fuel dumping after deploying the satellites, with an estimated flight duration of 21 minutes and 24 seconds.