K-RadCube enters orbit aboard Artemis II

A CubeSat developed by South Korean researchers has successfully entered orbit after joining the United States’ crewed lunar mission Artemis II, underscoring the country’s growing role in space exploration.

The Korea AeroSpace Administration said K-RadCube, launched aboard NASA’s Space Launch System, was deployed at 12:58 a.m. local time on April 2 from a high Earth orbit about 40,000 kilometers above the planet. The mission marks South Korea’s participation as a launch partner in lunar exploration, 54 years after the Apollo 17 Moon landing in 1972, when the country had virtually no space industry.

K-RadCube is led by the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, with Nara Space Technology responsible for the satellite platform and KT SAT handling ground control operations.

Its primary mission is to pass repeatedly through the Van Allen radiation belts, measuring radiation levels and studying their effects on human tissue. The belts are a region of intense radiation that shields Earth from solar wind. The satellite also carries memory chips from Samsung Electronics and SK hynix to test their performance in extreme space conditions.

Roughly the size of a shoebox, measuring 36 centimeters by 23 centimeters by 22 centimeters, the satellite integrates advanced technologies into a compact frame. It must rely on its onboard propulsion system to enter a long elliptical orbit that repeatedly crosses the radiation belts. Such maneuvers require propulsion, but under NASA’s human spaceflight standards, systems using chemical fuels face strict safety certification due to explosion risks.

To meet those requirements within a limited timeframe, researchers adopted a water vapor propulsion system that produces thrust by heating liquid water and expelling steam. Lithium-ion batteries, which also carry fire risks, are protected by a triple-layered system of physical and electrical safeguards.

Moon Hong-kyu, a principal researcher at the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute who led the project, said the mission shows South Korea has entered a stage where it can contribute to technical standards and safety benchmarks for crewed space exploration.


최지원 jwchoi@donga.com