Korea to Construct First Launch Pad

It looks like Korea is serious about starting a space industry:

South Korea also plans to build a rocket launch pad on its own soil, though it will focus on uncrewed satellite launches. Hyundai Heavy Industries, the world’s largest shipbuilder, on Tuesday said it had won an order to build South Korea’s first space rocket launch pad.

The contract from the Korea Aerospace Research Institute calls for a launch platform and related facilities at the Naro Space Center on a southern island off the town of Goheung.

South Korea plans to launch a 100-kilogram (220 pound) satellite into orbit from Naro in October 2008. Construction of the space centre will be completed early in 2008.

Following completion of the project, South Korea will become the world’s ninth nation capable of launching a satellite with its own technology. So far it has relied on centres in other countries to send its satellites into orbit.

Financial terms were not given but Hyundai Heavy said it would build launch facilities, fuelling systems and a control room for the launch pad, which will be able to accommodate two rockets.

It will be interesting to see if Hyundai intends to develop this launch capability strictly for domestic Korean use or plan to expand it to compete for example against the Russians for launching international satellites.  It good to see Hyundai looking to the future and getting into the space industry.  I’ll really don’t see any reason why Korea couldn’t make quality rockets considering the technological capabilities of the country. 

Here is a map that shows the island where the launch pad at Goheung will be built:

Goheung is definitely a remote enough area of Korea to build a launch pad at.  It is actually one of the few areas of the country I haven’t been too.  Here is a satellite image of the island that will host the space center:

When this launch pad gets built I will have to get down there to see a launch some time.