KARI Signs Contract to Replace Russian Ankara Launch Vehicle
Launch Scheduled for Second Half of Last Year Delayed by Russia-Ukraine War
Active Imaging Radar Satellite to Replace Multipurpose 5 Mission
The Multipurpose Practical Satellite 6 (Arirang 6), whose launch was delayed due to the Russia-Ukraine war, will be launched as a substitute using Europe's Arianespace Vega-C launch vehicle.
▲Multipurpose Practical Satellite 5 Model. Photo.
The Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) announced on the 31st that the substitute launch contract procedure for the Multipurpose Practical Satellite 6, which will be used for public purposes such as Earth observation and disaster response, has been finalized.
This satellite was originally scheduled to be placed into orbit in the second half of last year using a Russian Angara launch vehicle. It was intended to succeed the Multipurpose Practical Satellite 5, which had a mission lifespan of 5 years. However, the Russia-Ukraine war that broke out in February last year led to international sanctions, causing the launch to be postponed. This satellite is known as a state-of-the-art national space asset equipped with an active high-resolution synthetic aperture radar boasting a 0.5-meter class resolution.
KARI has been negotiating with SpaceX and Europe's Arianespace under the European Space Agency (ESA) to replace Russia, and recently signed a contract with Arianespace to launch the satellite between December next year and early 2025. The specific launch schedule will be confirmed later within this timeframe.
Regarding the recovery of the deposit paid at the time of the launch contract with the Russian side, no information has been disclosed. KARI explained, "According to the contract, we are not allowed to disclose the amount of the deposit or whether it will be recovered."
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