ID :
127244
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 22:57
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/127244
The shortlink copeid
(News Focus) (rocket launch) Failed rocket launch thwarts S. Korea`s membership in `space club`
By Lee Joon-seung
NARO SPACE CENTER, South Korea, June 10 (Yonhap) -- The failure to place a
locally assembled satellite-carrying rocket into orbit has again thwarted South
Korea's efforts to gain a coveted place in the "space club" of global space
exploration leaders, experts said Thursday.
Local aerospace experts said that the loss of the two-stage Naro-1 rocket just
137 seconds after blastoff underscores the difficulty of sending a satellite into
orbit and the level of expertise needed in the building of space rockets.
The rocket, also called the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 (KSLV-1), lifted off
from the Naro Space Center off the country's south coast at 5:01 p.m., but ground
controllers lost contact 137 seconds into its ascent.
The rocket was at an altitude of 70 kilometers and 87km away from the launch pad.
South Korean mission controllers said they suspect the first-stage rocket
exploded just before it reached its highest engine thrust level of 144 tons and
before the fairing assembly was scheduled to be ejected.
Experts like Tahk Min-jae, an aerospace engineering professor at the Korea
Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, said the Naro-1 was entering a very
vulnerable period of the flight just after it broke the sound barrier, with the
engine running at near maximum output.
He said that because the main first-stage rocket was still operating, the cause
of the failure was probably related to the liquid fuel engine made by Khrunichev
State Research and Production Space Center.
This view was echoed by Chang Young-keun, an aeronautical engineer at Korea
Aerospace University, who expected South Korea's effort to make its own rocket
may be pushed back by up to two years.
"If another Naro-1 is built, it will take close to two years for the Russians to
deliver such a rocket, which will effectively delay the development of follow-up
rockets underway in South Korea," he said.
Originally, Seoul wanted to use the Naro-1 rockets to kick off the development of
its indigenous rocket program that aims to place a 1.5-ton satellite into orbit
around 2020. The new rocket would have four locally developed 75-ton thrust
rockets generating 300 tons of thrust -- twice the output of the Naro-1 -- and
would be a three-stage unit that could send a satellite into orbit 600-800
kilometers from the Earth's surface.
He said the latest setback clearly shows the very complicated nature of
rocket-launching.
Others such as Yoon Woong-sup, a mechanical engineering professor at Yonsei
University in Seoul, said the country should not be overly discouraged because
many countries have experienced similar setbacks when they began space
exploration.
"Even in well-tested rockets that have sent up satellites and people many times
in the past, serious problems may arise," he said.
He claimed that initial failures can actually be constructive since rockets that
experience problems early on actually turn out to be better commercial launch
vehicles.
South Korea had sent up another Naro-1 on Aug. 25, 2009, but the launch was only
"half-successful" because a malfunction in the fairing assembly made it
impossible to deploy a satellite into orbit even though the rocket reached orbit.
Reflecting such views, the state-run Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI)
said the success rate of a country sending up a rocket on the first attempt is
about 30 percent.
Of the 11 countries that have launched locally assembled rockets from 1957-2008,
only Russia, France and Israel actually placed their satellites successfully into
orbit on the first attempt.
It said that well-known rockets like the U.S.-made Vanguard and Atlas, as well as
European launch vehicle models including Europa and Ariane, have all suffered
losses at the start. Russia, which enjoys a relatively high success rate, lost
the Soyuz 11A511U in 2002, with Japan's rocket program being adversely affected
with the loss of two H-2 rockets in the 1990s.
South Korea, meanwhile, said that it has not given up its dream of sending a
satellite-carrying rocket into space, and said it will hold talks with Russia to
launch a third Naro-1 rocket. Under the space development pact with Moscow, Seoul
can ask for a third launch if the first two rockets fail to place a satellite
into orbit, although Russia is not obligated to provide another space launch
vehicle.
Minister of Education, Science and Technology Ahn Byong-man said that once the
exact cause has been determined, Seoul will convene a "failure review board" that
will determine the cause of the loss and what follow-up measures can be taken.
The official said that notwithstanding the latest setback, South Korea will
continue to move forward with the space rocket project to build up its indigenous
rocket-launching capability.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)
NARO SPACE CENTER, South Korea, June 10 (Yonhap) -- The failure to place a
locally assembled satellite-carrying rocket into orbit has again thwarted South
Korea's efforts to gain a coveted place in the "space club" of global space
exploration leaders, experts said Thursday.
Local aerospace experts said that the loss of the two-stage Naro-1 rocket just
137 seconds after blastoff underscores the difficulty of sending a satellite into
orbit and the level of expertise needed in the building of space rockets.
The rocket, also called the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 (KSLV-1), lifted off
from the Naro Space Center off the country's south coast at 5:01 p.m., but ground
controllers lost contact 137 seconds into its ascent.
The rocket was at an altitude of 70 kilometers and 87km away from the launch pad.
South Korean mission controllers said they suspect the first-stage rocket
exploded just before it reached its highest engine thrust level of 144 tons and
before the fairing assembly was scheduled to be ejected.
Experts like Tahk Min-jae, an aerospace engineering professor at the Korea
Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, said the Naro-1 was entering a very
vulnerable period of the flight just after it broke the sound barrier, with the
engine running at near maximum output.
He said that because the main first-stage rocket was still operating, the cause
of the failure was probably related to the liquid fuel engine made by Khrunichev
State Research and Production Space Center.
This view was echoed by Chang Young-keun, an aeronautical engineer at Korea
Aerospace University, who expected South Korea's effort to make its own rocket
may be pushed back by up to two years.
"If another Naro-1 is built, it will take close to two years for the Russians to
deliver such a rocket, which will effectively delay the development of follow-up
rockets underway in South Korea," he said.
Originally, Seoul wanted to use the Naro-1 rockets to kick off the development of
its indigenous rocket program that aims to place a 1.5-ton satellite into orbit
around 2020. The new rocket would have four locally developed 75-ton thrust
rockets generating 300 tons of thrust -- twice the output of the Naro-1 -- and
would be a three-stage unit that could send a satellite into orbit 600-800
kilometers from the Earth's surface.
He said the latest setback clearly shows the very complicated nature of
rocket-launching.
Others such as Yoon Woong-sup, a mechanical engineering professor at Yonsei
University in Seoul, said the country should not be overly discouraged because
many countries have experienced similar setbacks when they began space
exploration.
"Even in well-tested rockets that have sent up satellites and people many times
in the past, serious problems may arise," he said.
He claimed that initial failures can actually be constructive since rockets that
experience problems early on actually turn out to be better commercial launch
vehicles.
South Korea had sent up another Naro-1 on Aug. 25, 2009, but the launch was only
"half-successful" because a malfunction in the fairing assembly made it
impossible to deploy a satellite into orbit even though the rocket reached orbit.
Reflecting such views, the state-run Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI)
said the success rate of a country sending up a rocket on the first attempt is
about 30 percent.
Of the 11 countries that have launched locally assembled rockets from 1957-2008,
only Russia, France and Israel actually placed their satellites successfully into
orbit on the first attempt.
It said that well-known rockets like the U.S.-made Vanguard and Atlas, as well as
European launch vehicle models including Europa and Ariane, have all suffered
losses at the start. Russia, which enjoys a relatively high success rate, lost
the Soyuz 11A511U in 2002, with Japan's rocket program being adversely affected
with the loss of two H-2 rockets in the 1990s.
South Korea, meanwhile, said that it has not given up its dream of sending a
satellite-carrying rocket into space, and said it will hold talks with Russia to
launch a third Naro-1 rocket. Under the space development pact with Moscow, Seoul
can ask for a third launch if the first two rockets fail to place a satellite
into orbit, although Russia is not obligated to provide another space launch
vehicle.
Minister of Education, Science and Technology Ahn Byong-man said that once the
exact cause has been determined, Seoul will convene a "failure review board" that
will determine the cause of the loss and what follow-up measures can be taken.
The official said that notwithstanding the latest setback, South Korea will
continue to move forward with the space rocket project to build up its indigenous
rocket-launching capability.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)
