Florida, United States

South Korea’s defence ministry, on Monday (Apr 8) said that the country’s second homegrown spy satellite had successfully been launched and entered orbit. The launch took place a day prior on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the John F Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United States.

Advertisment

Second spy satellite launched

The second launch comes months after the first one put South Korea’s spy satellite into orbit from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California in December. 

The recent launch also comes days after North Korea reaffirmed its plan to launch multiple reconnaissance satellites this year.

Advertisment

The successful launch took place at 2317 GMT on Sunday, which was Monday morning in Seoul. South Korea’s defense ministry said that the satellite successfully separated from the launch vehicle 45 minutes after the launch and entered its targeted orbit. 

Also Read | Russia-Ukraine war: Drone strikes damage Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant

According to South Korea’s military officials, successful communications with a ground station were made two hours and 40 minutes after the launch.

Advertisment

The recently launched South Korean satellite is equipped with a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) which is said to be capable of producing images regardless of weather conditions.

“With the success of the second military spy satellite launch, our military has acquired an additional independent surveillance ability and further bolstered our ‘kill chain’ capability,” defense ministry spokesperson Jeon Ha Gyu told reporters. 

South Korea will launch five spy satellites by 2025 under a contract with Elon Musk’s SpaceX. In 2022, Seoul became the 10th nation in the world to successfully launch a satellite with its own technology by using a homegrown rocket. 

“We will proceed with future satellite launches without a hitch,” said a statement by the ministry after the second launch.

Race with North Korea

The spy satellite launches come amid growing tensions between Pyongyang and Seoul, with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un labelling South Korea as his country’s “principal enemy”. 

Both countries have sought to improve their military capabilities in space. North Korea claimed that it successfully launched the Malligyong-1 satellite into orbit in November, after its two fiery failures. 

Also Read | Probe begins after engine cover falls off Southwest Boeing flight; passenger records 'scary' moment

Speaking about North Korea’s first spy satellite, Marco Langbroek, a satellite expert at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands said, "We can definitely say the satellite is alive,” as quoted by Reuters.

Pyongyang has also previously vowed to launch three new spy satellites in 2024.

South Korean defence minister Shin Won-sik said that North Korea could launch a second spy satellite as early as mid-April, reported news agency Yonhap. 

Jeon told reporters that Shin’s comments are based on the military’s observation of North Korea’s related activities. 

(With inputs from agencies)