South Korea Successfully Launches Fifth Spy Satellite Into Orbit

JAKARTA - South Korea's fifth military spy satellite, launched from the United States space base in Florida on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, has entered orbit, South Korea's Ministry of Defense said, a move that is expected to strengthen its independent surveillance capabilities.

The Falcon 9 rocket took off at 01.09 a.m. (US time) from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station as planned and put the reconnaissance satellite into orbit about 14 minutes after takeoff, according to the Ministry of Defense.

South Korea's Ministry of Defense later confirmed the satellite managed to communicate with the ground station about an hour after takeoff, which showed normal operation of the satellite.

The synthetic apertur radar satellite (SAR) is the fifth and last military satellite launched under the country's plans to deploy five spy satellites by the end of this year, to better monitor North Korea and help reduce its dependence on the image of US satellites.

"With this latest launch, (the military) will be able to build independent capabilities to carry out surveillance and reconnaissance in all weather conditions on the Korean Peninsula by operating these satellites in a cluster," the ministry said in an announcement. November 3rd.

The first three satellites have been fully deployed, while the fourth satellite is undergoing operational evaluation.

After the five satellites are fully deployed, the country is expected to be able to monitor North Korea every two hours.

"The Ministry of Defense and Administration of the Defense Acquisition Program anticipates the successful launch of the fifth military reconnaissance satellite will further strengthen the capability of the Murder Chain (military)," the ministry said in a statement referring to one of the pillars of the country's three-branch prevention structures.

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said the latest launch had "equipped" the military's independent ability to monitor the Korean Peninsula around the clock and promised to continue to strive to improve its space defense capabilities.

South Korea launched its first spy satellite in December 2023, equipped with an electro-optical and infrared sensor capable of capturing detailed images.

Since then, South Korea has launched three more satellites equipped with SAR sensors that can collect any data on weather conditions.

Pyongyang itself has also stepped up efforts to acquire space-based reconnaissance capabilities against its enemies.

North Korea successfully launched its first military spy satellite, Malligyong-1, in November 2023 and has pledged to launch three more spy satellites by 2024.

However, North Korea has not launched another satellite since a rocket carrying a satellite exploded shortly after taking off in May last year.