South Korea launches first space rocket made within country

The first domestically made South Korean space rocket launched on Thursday in a test that ended in a partial failure.

KSLV-II Nuri rocket, which was launched from Naro Space Center, was successful in its first and second stages of the mission by separately correcting and getting into space, Reuters reported. 

However, in the final stage, the rocket failed to place a dummy satellite into orbit after shutting off 50 seconds too early, causing the rocket not to have enough speed to place the payload where it needed to be. 

“Unfortunately, we did not fully reach our goal,” South Korean President Moon Jae-in said at the area of the launch.

“It’s not long before we’ll be able to launch it exactly into the target trajectory,” he added. “The ‘Korea Space Age’ is approaching.”

This was the first rocket South Korea has launched that was fully made with technology from the country, The Associated Press reported. Its previous space exploration was done in collaboration with others. 

“Today’s launch left some disappointment, but it is significant as it was the first test of the launch vehicle independently developed with our own technology,” Science and Technology Minister Lim Hye-sook said after the launch. “It’s meaningful to confirm that all major launch steps were carried out and we have secured core technology.”

The next test launch is set for May 19. Officials have already begun investigating why the rocket shut off early on Thursday, according to Reuters.