「Russian partners congratulate South Korea on successful space rocket launch 25.08.2009, 18.43 SEOUL, August 25 (Itar-Tass) -- South Korea successfully launched its first space rocket, KSLV-1 (The First Korean Space Launch Vehicle), on Tuesday. The rocket, which cost approximately $406 million, delivered a 100-kilogram satellite to orbit. The 140-tonne rocket is 33 meters long and 2.9 meters in diameter. It makes South Korea a new member of the space club - the states that have their launch centers and use domestic technologies to put satellites in orbit.
The Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade (KIET) estimated the economic effect of the space launch at $1.8 billion. According to the institute, the satellite will have a good effect on the construction industry, create jobs and boost exports. Russian partners congratulated South Korea on the success. The project is based on the bilateral intergovernmental agreement on peaceful uses of outer space, a source at the Khrunichev Aerospace Center told Itar-Tass. “Russia and South Korea agreed on the joint design of the space launch vehicle, KSLV. The contract was signed in October 2004,” the source said. Khrunichev designed the first stage of the rocket, and South Korea made the second stage and the payload. The Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) ordered the rocket. Energomash designed and produced the first stage’s engine, and the Transport Machine Building Design Bureau helped build the land infrastructure of the Naro space center..」