[Nuriho Launch] The Approaching 'K-Space Era'... Targeting a 1200 Trillion Won Market

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] "One step remains." On the afternoon of the 21st, Minister Lim Hye-sook of the Ministry of Science and ICT made this remark regarding the ‘2% bittersweet success’ of the Korean space launch vehicle Nuriho (KSLV-2) launched that day. Although the first launch of Nuriho ended incomplete due to the failure of the final mission to insert the satellite mock-up into orbit, the statement was fitting as it made the Korean people truly feel the approaching ‘space economy era.’

According to the Ministry of Science and ICT and the space industry on the 22nd, space is moving beyond being merely a tool for national power display, satisfying curiosity, or boosting public morale, and is entering the New Space era where it becomes a practical ‘living environment’ for humanity’s future. Indeed, the renaissance of space development and the space economy era have arrived.

◆Full-scale Space Tourism and Mars Colonization

The U.S. government has resumed the manned lunar exploration (Artemis Project) that had been suspended for some time and is jointly promoting the construction of the Lunar Gateway to replace the International Space Station (ISS). Especially, it is accelerating deep space development such as Mars exploration and is developing the super heavy-lift launch vehicle (SLS). The U.S. is also dualizing space development by having government agencies like NASA focus on deep space exploration while the private sector accelerates market development centered on near-Earth space.

China also succeeded in Mars exploration in February this year, plans to complete and operate its space station next year, and is actively engaging in space development by building super heavy rockets and challenging space solar power generation. Japan recently announced its ‘Space Industry Vision’ and is actively fostering the private space industry. The movements of these space powers are not merely for national prestige but focus on long-term visions such as lunar or asteroid resource exploration and development, and Mars colonization to prepare for climate warming, environmental destruction, and resource depletion on Earth, which are expected to become visible soon.

In the private sector, commercialization trends are strong. Space companies like Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin are actively developing rocket reuse technology to reduce costs and generate profits in related industries such as space tourism and space internet. SpaceX succeeded in the world’s first orbital space tourism in September and plans to offer lunar travel packages in 2023. Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic also launched space tourism programs in July. SpaceX has already commercialized space internet and plans to launch about 10,000 satellites to open worldwide service before 2030. Amazon and OneWeb have also entered the space internet service market.

As depicted in the movie ‘Space Sweepers,’ the need for space development is increasingly emphasized from a security perspective, including the establishment of a space force to block threats such as growing space debris and asteroids, satellite destruction, and bombardment from space. Technologies such as ultra-small cluster satellites and 6G ultra-high-speed communication networks are becoming essential in the Fourth Industrial Revolution era, where autonomous driving, artificial intelligence (AI) satellites, and urban air mobility (UAM) are becoming mainstream. The utilization of satellite big data using Earth observation information available only from space is greatly increasing, as is the GPS system that provides accurate location, time, and navigation information.

◆Korea Challenges the 1200 Trillion Won Market

With the development of Nuriho, Korea has effectively become the world’s seventh country to possess independent launch vehicle technology, securing essential conditions to protect national interests and security and to be recognized as a partner in international space development cooperation to gain shares. With the Korean government and private companies planning to launch more than 100 satellites over the next decade, the current dependence on Russia, France, and others is expected to be overcome. Although the assembly of U.S.-made high-performance components on payloads is prohibited due to U.S. export control policies, experts point out that this can be resolved through diplomatic efforts.

Above all, as the global space industry is developing in earnest, the independent launch vehicle development is nourishing the growth and support of Korea’s space industry ecosystem. The government plans to actively revitalize the private space industry ecosystem by stimulating public demand through additional launches and upgrades of Nuriho, development of the Korean Positioning System (KPS), construction of ultra-high-speed satellite communication networks, and ultra-small cluster satellite systems. The production value induced by the Nuriho development project, which has received an investment of 1.9572 trillion won over 12 years, alone amounts to 5.05 trillion won. Moreover, global investment bank Morgan Stanley forecasts that the space industry scale will reach 1.1 trillion dollars (about 1200 trillion won) by 2040.

Kwon Se-jin, director of the Satellite Center at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), explained, "I consider the first launch of Nuriho a technical success. The failure of the satellite mock-up to enter orbit does not mean failure." He added, "We now have an independent space launch vehicle with domestic technology. It can be used for cluster satellite projects, lunar exploration, and deep space exploration programs in the future."