President Lee watches fifth Nuri launch live... says launch intervals should be shortened further

[The Financial News] President Lee Jae-myung called for further shortening the intervals between launches to accelerate satellite technology development following the successful fifth launch of Nuri on the 7th.
Kim Seong-wan, a spokesperson for Cheong Wa Dae, said at a briefing at Chunchugwan that afternoon that President Lee watched the fifth Nuri launch live from his office at Cheong Wa Dae, alongside the chief of staff, the policy chief and the senior secretary for AI and Future Planning.
While waiting for the launch, President Lee asked Lee Hae-min, the senior secretary for AI and Future Planning, in detail about launch preparations and progress, as well as the types and functions of the satellites onboard.
The senior secretary explained that the launch would give the government an opportunity to transfer technology to the private sector on a large scale, laying the groundwork for its entry into the private launch vehicle market, and that the first cluster-satellite launch would help enhance the reliability of launch vehicles.
President Lee watched the launch process for about 20 minutes after Nuri lifted off, until all the satellites had been deployed. After the launch’s success was confirmed, footage showed officials from the Korea Aerospace Research Institute cheering; President Lee applauded along with them and was pleased, spokesperson Kim said.
President Lee called the launch a result of the government’s active support for space launches and urged further shortening the intervals between launches to accelerate satellite technology development.
Cheong Wa Dae said President Lee had worked since taking office to expand opportunities to launch Nuri, helping domestic companies enter the commercial space transportation market. It said the government had significantly increased the number of Nuri launches in line with President Lee’s position that launches should be possible at least once a year.
Nuri was initially scheduled to launch six times in total from 2021 to 2027, but the government decided to add five launches by 2032, increasing the total project budget by 328 billion won.
Cheong Wa Dae said Nuri had launched twice over 36 months under the previous administration, compared with twice in 17 months under the Lee Jae-myung administration, and that the government planned to continue increasing the number of launches.
“This is an important measure to lay the groundwork for our companies to keep pace with the rapidly growing global space and aerospace market,” spokesperson Kim said. “As a result, Nuri launches under the Lee Jae-myung administration have proceeded smoothly, without delays or failures.”
The fifth launch carried a record 15 satellites, and was the first in South Korea to successfully deploy five cluster satellites into their target orbit.
Spokesperson Kim emphasized that “this will enhance the reliability of South Korea’s launch vehicles and serve as an opportunity for the space industry to take a leap forward.”
[email protected] Choi Jong-geun, Seong Seok-woo Reporter