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The photo shows the launch of a solid-fuel propelled space rocket developed by the Defense Science Research Institute.
The Defense Science Research Institute has successfully launched a solid-fuel propelled space rocket on December 4. Prior to this successful launch, solid-fuel propelled space rockets carrying satellite mock-ups were successfully launched in March and December of last year.
The Ministry of National Defense officially announced through a press release “We have successfully launched a solid-fuel space rocket, developed purely with our technology, from a sea line 4km south of Jeju Island at 2 p.m. for performance verification.”
The Ministry of National Defense stated that the solid-fuel space rocket carried a commercial satellite, but in fact, it was carrying a miniature SAR reconnaissance satellite verification prototype jointly developed by the Defense Science Research Institute and Hanwha Systems.
As if to prove this, Hanwha Systems announced that the satellite successfully communicated with the ground control center in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, around 3:45 p.m.
The photo shows the separation of Hanwha Systems’ mini SAR satellite from the satellite launcher of the Defense Science Research Institute.
Hanwha Systems Mini SAR Satellite
The launched mini SAR satellite of Hanwha Systems weighs 101kg, and is designed to perform at a resolution of 1m while rotating at a low orbit of 650km above the ground.
According to a Hanwha Systems official, the original target weight was 66kg, but as the development progressed, the weight continuously increased to 101kg. The reason for this is that a proper shielding structure is needed to shield against the powerful electromagnetic storms and radiation in space, and there were many trials and errors as it was the first time developing a mini satellite.
In the end, the method adopted by the development team was to develop a model with excellent electromagnetic/radiation shielding capabilities, i.e., a highly reliable model, even if the weight was slightly higher.
This is the initial goal of the mini SAR verification satellite. The target weight was under 66kg, but it eventually increased to 101kg.
The launch method also changed. Originally, Hanwha Systems planned to launch using a verified satellite launcher like the Falcon-9 in the United States by investing its own budget, but it ended up using a launcher from the Defense Science Research Institute that has not yet been completed.
From Hanwha Systems’ perspective, it might have been a bit of an adventure, but it seems that they chose a bit of an adventure because they could gain points by providing an appropriate satellite while having a cooperative relationship with the Defense Science Research Institute, and if successful, they could conduct a reliability evaluation test for free.
In fact, a Ministry of National Defense official explained, “The original plan for the third test launch was to launch with a dummy satellite, but since there is a satellite made in the private sector, we decided to mount it in a win-win dimension.” (But is Hanwha Systems a private company{vi225}?)
This is the spec of the mini SAR verification satellite that Hanwha Systems revealed in the middle of the development process, showing that the weight has increased to around 100kg.
◆ Victory from the Mini Reconnaissance Satellite!
The mini SAR satellite test body launched by the Defense Science Research Institute and Hanwha Systems this time is a model developed to secure technical data needed for the currently in progress<초소형 정찰위성 배치사업>.
The five reconnaissance satellites that the Ministry of National Defense is currently launching through the 425 project can only survey the Korean Peninsula at two-hour intervals. The military is building a Kill Chain system to respond to North Korea’s mobile missile launchers and long-range artillery, and to properly strike mobile launchers, there is a need to shorten the observation time intervals.
This is the Falcon-9 satellite launcher carrying the 425 reconnaissance satellite. It has successfully launched and is in the stabilization process.
In response, the government and the Ministry of National Defense plan to deploy a large number of mini reconnaissance satellites weighing between 100~150kg from 2022 to 2030 by investing a budget of 1 trillion 4,223 billion won. If you look at the content, they plan to launch OO mini SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) reconnaissance satellites to reduce the passing period of the Korean Peninsula to within OO minutes. In other words, the goal is near real-time surveillance, and it is also a sufficient time to track and strike North Korea’s mobile ballistic missiles.
This is a model of the mini SAR reconnaissance satellite revealed by Hanwha Systems. Currently, the reconnaissance satellite field is classified as a core business, not a sideline.
Since this project is over 1 trillion won in scale, it is impossible to have a discretionary contract with a single business operator under the Defense Business Act. And since competition increases negotiation power, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration gave KAI an opportunity in addition to Hanwha Systems, which jointly developed the mini SAR satellite with the Defense Science Research Institute.
On May 17, the Defense Science Research Institute signed a contract to develop the H model by paying Hanwha Systems 627 billion won in development costs and the K model by paying KAI 679 billion won.
