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South Korea successfully launches home-grown Nuri space rocket after failed attempt last year
- South Korea became the seventh country in the world to put a satellite weighing more than a tonne into orbit in a boost for its space ambitions
- It also aims to launch four more Nuri rockets over the next five years and land a probe on the Moon by 2030
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South Korea’s domestically built Nuri rocket successfully placed a payload into orbit on Tuesday, boosting its efforts to catch up with advanced countries in space development after a first test failed last year.
The three-stage Nuri rocket, emblazoned with a national flag, lifted off from the Naro Space Centre on a small island off the country’s southern coast at 4pm (local time).
After flying 14 minutes to reach an altitude of 700 kilometres, it put a “performance verification” satellite into orbit, the science ministry said.
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“The launch of the Korea-developed space vehicle Nuri was successful,” Science Minister Lee Jong-ho said at a press conference.
“We’ve written a new chapter in the country’s history of science and technology.”
In the first attempt last October, Nuri reached its desired altitude of 700 kilometres but failed to put a dummy payload into orbit because the engine of the rocket’s third stage burned out earlier than planned.
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