Korea Says Fifth Nuri Rocket Launch Preparations Are on Track

South Korea is on schedule for the fifth launch of its domestically developed Nuri rocket, according to the head of the country’s space agency, as engineers prepare for a mission that will test the vehicle’s ability to deploy multiple satellites with precision.

Oh Tae-seok, administrator of the Korea AeroSpace Administration, said Wednesday that preparations had proceeded without problems. The launch is scheduled for Oct. 7 from the Naro Space Center in Goheung, about 473 kilometers south of Seoul.

The three-stage rocket will carry 15 satellites. Its primary payload consists of five New-space Earth Observation Satellite Constellations for National Safety satellites, known as NEONSAT. The group will form part of South Korea’s first microsatellite constellation launched by a domestically developed rocket. Ten CubeSats will travel as secondary payloads.

The mission’s most demanding task will come after liftoff. The launch vehicle must release all 15 satellites accurately and place them into their assigned orbits. Oh said the ability to deliver different satellites to different orbits is an essential capability for commercial launch services, making the deployment sequence an important opportunity to build operational expertise.

That emphasis gives the fifth flight significance beyond another test of whether Nuri can reach space. A successful mission would demonstrate greater control over complex payload operations, a capability needed to serve institutional and commercial customers that may want several spacecraft carried on a single launch. Multi-satellite deployment can make missions more efficient, but it also requires carefully timed separation and reliable orbital placement.

The Korea Aerospace Research Institute released a video Wednesday showing the rocket’s three stages being assembled at the Naro Space Center on Tuesday. The footage indicated that integration work was continuing as the launch date approached.

Nuri is formally known as the Korea Space Launch Vehicle II and represents South Korea’s effort to establish an independent launch capability. For the upcoming flight, attention will focus not only on the performance of the rocket’s stages but also on whether the full set of primary and secondary payloads is delivered as planned.

With one week remaining before the scheduled launch, the space agency’s assessment suggests the campaign remains on course. The final outcome, however, will depend on the completion of launch-site preparations and the rocket’s performance through the satellite deployment phase.