Using SpaceX’s ‘Falcon 9’… “Start of Korea’s first swarm operation”
SAR satellite like Unit 2… Complementary to Unit 1 EO/IR satellite
Our military’s third military reconnaissance satellite was launched on the 21st and entered the planned orbit normally. If the launch is ultimately successful, it will orbit the Earth dozens of times a day through Korea’s first swarm operation along with Units 1 and 2, and will be able to check the movements of targets, including the North Korean leadership, at any time.
The Ministry of National Defense said on the 21st, “Military Reconnaissance Satellite No. 3, launched at 8:34 pm on the 21st Korean time (3:34 am local time), successfully separated from the launch vehicle at 9:24 pm, 51 minutes after launch, and returned to its target orbit. “We entered,” he said.
Military reconnaissance satellite unit 3, like units 1 and 2, was launched aboard the ‘Falcon 9’ rocket of US private space company SpaceX. Falcon 9 is the world’s only reusable launch vehicle and has a launch success rate of 89.1%. The launch site was the U.S. Vandenberg Space Force Base.
Unit 3’s launch and target orbit entry times are consistent with our military’s planned times. Unit 3 is scheduled to confirm normal operation through communication with the ground station approximately 3 hours after launch (estimated at 11:34 p.m.). Successful communication means that the satellite is operating normally.
Unit 3 was transported from Korea to the Vandenberg Space Force Base at the end of last month, and following satellite inspection and launch vehicle assembly, the final rehearsal was completed on the 19th of this month.
Once the successful launch of Unit 3 is confirmed, work such as deploying solar panels and antenna reflectors in orbit, checking platform functions, and confirming normal operation of the satellite operation mode will be carried out for about two weeks. Communication with domestic and overseas ground stations will also continue to take place.
The Ministry of National Defense expected, “If the launch of Unit 3 is successful, our military will be able to secure additional world-class Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites and further increase the completeness of the Korean three-axis system.”
The successful launch of Unit 3, along with Units 1 and 2, marks Korea’s first ‘swarm operation’. In the operation of swarm satellites, multiple satellites operate in cooperation with each other to quickly respond to requests for observation of a specific area, and even if an abnormal situation such as a failure of a specific satellite occurs, the remaining satellites can compensate for it, resulting in high mission availability and flexibility.
According to the Ministry of National Defense, through swarm operation, the target’s movement can be checked at any time by orbiting the Earth dozens of times a day. With increased opportunities to acquire images on a daily basis and multi-angle observation, our military will be equipped with more precise situational awareness capabilities.
Seok Jong-geon, head of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, who oversees the launch of Unit 3 as the head of the launch management group, said, “Through Korea’s first reconnaissance satellite cluster operation, there will be increased opportunities for image acquisition and the use of sensors (EO, IR, SAR) suited to target characteristics, leading to future provocations by North Korea.” “We will be able to identify signs three-dimensionally,” he said. “We will continue to make efforts to strengthen defense space power through systematic space power reinforcement in the future.”
Unit 3 is the same SAR satellite as Unit 2, which was launched on April 8, and is capable of capturing high-resolution images and collecting information in all weather, day and night, and even when the weather is bad. The first unit, launched on December 2 last year, is an electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) satellite. SAR satellite images are transmitted as dots, pixel by pixel, making them difficult to distinguish on their own, and are operated in a complementary manner with EO images that can be interpreted by the human eye.
Under the 425 project, our military plans to secure a total of five high-resolution medium to large-sized (800 kg to 1 ton) military reconnaissance satellites, including four SAR satellites and one EO/IR satellite, by 2025.
Unit 1 was commissioned last August, and Unit 2 is currently undergoing operational testing. It is reported that our government and military are discussing plans with SpaceX to launch unit 4 in February and unit 5 in May next year.
When all five 425 Project satellites enter orbit and become operational, our military is expected to have the ability to collect information on major facilities such as missile bases and nuclear test sites in North Korea through satellite photos and videos at approximately two-hour intervals.
After Project 425, 50 to 60 small and ultra-small reconnaissance satellites using solid fuel space launch vehicles are also scheduled to be launched. When these satellites are operational in the late 2020s, our military will be able to reconnoiter areas of the Korean Peninsula, including North Korea, every 30 minutes.
(Seoul = News 1)
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