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According to Pulse by Maeil Business News Korea,

South Korea’s first lunar spacecraft Danuri set off for the moon on Thursday.

The orbiter, named Danuri, was launched to space as scheduled at 7:08 pm Eastern time in the United States or at 8:08 am in South Korea on Friday. 

It was previously known as the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO).

Elon Musk-owned SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket carried Danuri from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

The Korean spacecraft successfully separated from the rocket’s second stage after some 40 minutes of engine firings.

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced that Danuri made its first-ever communication with the ground station around 9:40 am Korea time, more than an hour and 30 minutes since the launch.

When it arrives in lunar orbit in mid-December, South Korea becomes the seventh successful case to have sent a spacecraft to the Moon.

The United States and the Soviet Union sent robotic spacecraft to the moon beginning in the 1960s. 

China, Japan, and the European Space Agency launched moon missions in the following years.

India has sent two orbiters to the moon as well.

When in lunar orbit, Danuri will join spacecraft from the United States’s National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA,) India, and China which are currently on exploration missions.

Updated with a statement on communication with the ground station from the Ministry of Science and ICT



Write to Hae-Sung Lee at ihs@hankyung.com

Jee Abbey Lee edited this article.

Copyrights Pulse by Maeil Business News Korea. All Rights Reserved.

Source: Pulse by Maeil Business News Korea (August 5, 2022)