Korea sets Oct. 7 for fifth Nuri rocket launch

The fifth launch date for Korea’s homegrown Nuri rocket has been scheduled for Oct. 7, the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) said Thursday.

The space agency reviewed the fifth Nuri rocket, its satellite payloads and preparations at the launch site Naro Space Center, as well as launch conditions, during its first launch management committee meeting in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang, on Thursday.

The launch window will run from 12:23 p.m. to 1:23 p.m. on Oct. 7.

Weather and space conditions are expected to be favorable that day, and no potential collisions with space objects are anticipated. The exact launch time will be determined on the day of the launch.

A backup launch window has been set for Oct. 8 to 14 in case weather or other unforeseen circumstances delay the scheduled launch.

The fifth Nuri rocket will carry 15 satellites into space — the largest payload by satellite count in Nuri's launch history. Five small cluster satellites, Nos. 2 through 6, and 10 CubeSats will be loaded into the upcoming Nuri rocket.

The five small cluster satellites arrived at the Naro Space Center on Monday. They are undergoing functional checks before being loaded onto the rocket.

The 10 CubeSats — jointly developed by universities, research institutes and industry — are scheduled to arrive at the space center by next Monday. The CubeSats comprise one satellite designed to test domestically developed components, two selected through a CubeSat competition and seven chosen through an open call.

“This fifth Nuri launch will carry a record 15 satellites and mark Korea’s first mission to place a satellite cluster into orbit,” said KASA Administrator Oh Tae-seog. “It will provide an opportunity to take Nuri’s mission capabilities and Korea’s space transportation capacity to the next level.”

The previous and fourth Nuri rocket launch took place at 1:13 a.m. on Nov. 27, 2025. 

 BY CHO MUN-GYU [[email protected]]