South Korea’s Nuri Rocket Completes Fourth Flight, Deploys 13 Satellites Into Orbit

Overview

• Liftoff occurred at 1:13 a.m. KST from Naro Space Center after a brief delay caused by an umbilical pressure sensor issue, with the flight lasting about 18 minutes.
• The rocket placed the CAS500-3 main payload and 12 CubeSats into a roughly 600-kilometer orbit in Nuri’s first nighttime launch.
• Key milestones included first-stage separation around two minutes and second-stage separation at about four minutes 30 seconds into flight, concluding at 1:31 a.m.
• The primary satellite established initial contact at 1:55 a.m. with King Sejong Station in Antarctica, and further checks are proceeding via additional ground stations.
• KASA, KARI and Hanwha are analyzing flight data, with follow-on launches targeted in 2026 and 2027 as Hanwha assumes a broader operational role.