South Korea launched its largest satellite yet on its nationally developed space rocket early on Thursday, the fourth of six planned launches through 2027.
The three-stage Nuri rocket lifted off from the country’s spaceport on an island off the southwestern coastal county of Goheung.
Aerospace officials said the rocket placed a 516kg (1,137-pound) science satellite and 12 microsatellites into a target orbit about 600km (372 miles) above Earth.
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The Korea Aerospace Administration was expected to verify in the coming hours whether the satellites were successfully sending signals.
The main satellite is equipped with a wide-range airglow camera to observe auroral activity and separate systems for measuring plasma and magnetic fields and for testing how life-science experiments perform in space.
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The dozen smaller “cube” satellites, developed by university teams and research institutions, include GPS systems to study Earth’s atmosphere, infrared cameras to track plastic in the oceans, and systems for testing solar cells or communication equipment.