The Korean Sounding Rocket Program

As a part of the Korea National Space Program, the Korean government has led the Sounding Rocket Program by Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) providing enhanced capabilities across a spectrum of earth sciences and/or astrophysics-related disciplines. In this paper, the Korean Sounding Rocket Program during 1993–2002 is introduced. This program includes Korea Sounding Rocket (KSR)-I, KSR-II, and KSR-III, and a total of five soundings were carried out. Two had flown in KSR-I series, two in KSR-II, and one in KSR-III. The main mission objective is to provide the opportunity to scientists for researching earth sciences and/or astrophysics and to improve Korean rocket development technologies including payload instruments, flight systems, ground systems, operational techniques, and interfaces between subsystems. As demand increased for launching of low-orbit earth satellites internally and externally, the Korean government was ambitiously firing the Korea Space Launch Vehicle (KSLV) Program in 2002, based on experience throughout the Sounding Rocket Program and preparing the world market for space launch vehicles.