The military's reconnaissance satellite No. 4 successfully entered orbit on the 22nd and has established communication with the ground station. Following the successful launches of reconnaissance satellites No. 1 to No. 3, the launch of No. 4 allows for the identification of North Korea's provocative signs more accurately and quickly.
According to the Ministry of National Defense, the rocket 'Falcon 9' from the U.S. space company SpaceX, which carries reconnaissance satellite No. 4, was launched at 9:48 a.m. Korea time on the same day (8:48 p.m. local time on the 21st) from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, USA.
Two minutes and 18 seconds after launch, the first-stage booster was separated, and 19 seconds later, the satellite protective cover was released. About 15 minutes after launch, at around 10:03 a.m., reconnaissance satellite No. 4 separated from the second-stage booster of the Falcon 9 and settled into its target orbit, successfully communicating with the ground station around 12:27 p.m. This was 2 hours and 39 minutes after the Falcon 9 was launched.
Reconnaissance satellite No. 4 is scheduled to conduct surveillance and reconnaissance missions against North Korea after undergoing operational tests and evaluations over the coming months. Reconnaissance satellite No. 1 was launched on Dec. 2, 2023, and has been performing its mission normally since August of last year. Satellites No. 2 and No. 3 were launched on April 8 and Dec. 21 of last year, respectively, and the power-up procedure is currently underway.
Like satellites No. 2 and No. 3, reconnaissance satellite No. 4 is equipped with Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR). It can secure all-weather ultra-high-resolution images, unaffected by day, night, or weather. SAR operates by sending electromagnetic waves to ground targets and synthesizing the signal data reflected back to create images.
Reconnaissance satellite No. 1 is equipped with Electro Optical (EO) and Infra Red (IR) imaging equipment. The EO equipment uses visible light to directly capture images of the ground, providing clear images; however, mission execution is limited on cloudy days due to weather effects. The IR equipment uses infrared detection sensors that differentiate based on temperature variations to acquire image information.
Reconnaissance satellites No. 1 to No. 4 were launched under the military's 'Project 425' to acquire five medium and large reconnaissance satellites. The project, which operates a total of five satellites, is referred to as 'Project 425' based on the initials of SAR (사) and EO (이오). Military authorities plan to launch the fifth satellite within this year. Once all five reconnaissance satellites are operationally deployed, it will be possible to monitor and survey specific targets in North Korea every 2 hours.
The Ministry of National Defense and the Defense Acquisition Program Administration noted, 'This success has added independent surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities,' adding that it will strengthen the kill chain capabilities.