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South Korea launches first lunar orbiter – International News News – Report by AFR

South Korea’s first-ever lunar orbiter was launched Thursday by the US on a year-long mission to observe the moon, live video showed, with a payload that includes a new fault-tolerant network for sending data from space.

Danuri – a portmanteau of the Korean words for “moon” and “enjoy” – was carried on a Falcon 9 rocket launched by Elon Musk’s aerospace company SpaceX from Cape Canaveral in Florida. It is expected to reach the moon by mid-December.

“This is a very significant milestone in the history of Korean space exploration,” said Lee Sang-ryool, president of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, in a video shown ahead of the launch.

“Danuri is just the beginning, and if we are more determined and committed to technology development for space travel, we will be able to reach Mars, asteroids and so on in the near future.”

During the year-long mission, Danuri will use six different instruments, including a NASA-provided high-sensitivity camera, to conduct research, including examining the lunar surface to identify potential landing sites for future missions.

One of the instruments will evaluate fault-tolerant, network-based space communications, which is a world first, according to South Korea’s Science Ministry.

Danuri will also try to develop a wireless internet environment to connect satellites or exploration spacecraft, they added.

The Lunar Orbiter will stream the song “Dynamite” by K-pop sensation BTS to test this wireless network.

South Korean scientists say Danuri – which took seven years to build – will pave the way for the nation’s more ambitious goal of setting foot on the moon by 2030.

“If this mission is successful, South Korea will become the seventh country in the world to launch an unmanned probe to the moon,” an official with the Korea Aerospace Research Institute told AFP.

“This is a big moment for South Korea’s space development program, and we hope to continue to contribute to the global understanding of the Moon with what Danuri will discover.”

In June, the country launched its first domestically developed space rocket, the second attempt after a failed launch last October.

The three-stage Nuri rocket took a decade to develop and cost 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion).

In Asia, China, Japan and India all have advanced space programs, and the South’s nuclear-armed neighbor North Korea is the latest addition to the club of countries with satellite launch capabilities.

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