Private space launch corporations INNOSPACE on the 17th announced the joint investigation results on the cause of the suspension of the first commercial launch mission of "HANBIT-Nano." The investigation was conducted with the Center for Investigation and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents (CENIPA) under the Brazilian Air Force starting on Jan. 26.
Those surveyed is the first commercial launch "SPACEWARD" mission of "HANBIT-Nano," carried out on Dec. 22 last year at the Alcântara Space Center in Brazil. The launch took place at 10:13 p.m. (local time in Brazil), and 33 seconds after liftoff, an anomaly in the vehicle was detected, and the mission was terminated early under safety procedures. There were no confirmed casualties or additional facility damage.
INNOSPACE and CENIPA comprehensively reviewed flight instrumentation data and tracking data, ground facility records, launch operation records, video materials, and more, and also analyzed more than 300 pieces of debris recovered locally in two rounds. Based on this, they reconstructed the launch vehicle's flight process.
The analysis found that the launch vehicle flew normally during the initial flight phase immediately after liftoff, and the transmission and reception of flight data proceeded without issues. However, around 33 seconds after liftoff, combustion gas leaked from the forward section of the first-stage hybrid rocket combustion chamber assembly, causing the chamber to rupture, after which the launch vehicle separated into multiple parts, it was found.
The joint investigation team viewed this leakage as related to the replacement and reassembly of the forward plug of the combustion chamber carried out during local launch preparations in Brazil. During maintenance to improve launch reliability, plastic deformation occurred in the sealing material, reducing the compressive force that maintains internal sealing, and the compression state was not uniform, degrading sealing performance, it said.
INNOSPACE plans to refine assembly processes and strengthen quality control procedures based on the investigation results. For some related parts, it will also carry out design changes and improvements, followed by additional functional verification procedures.
Chief Executive Kim Su-jong of INNOSPACE said, "Through this investigation, we more clearly confirmed the main flight process by comprehensively reviewing flight data and various collected materials," and noted, "INNOSPACE and CENIPA reached the same conclusion on the direction of root-cause analysis and follow-up measures."
CENIPA also assessed that close cooperation and information sharing took place among INNOSPACE, CENIPA, and the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) during the investigation. Brazilian Air Force CENIPA lead investigator Col. Alexander Coelho Simão said a technically consistent conclusion was drawn through the joint analysis.
At the start of the investigation, CENIPA made clear that this investigation was a technical inquiry to improve Brazil's space operations safety, not a procedure to determine legal liability. It also explained that, on the premise of protecting intellectual property rights related to the launch vehicle and the principle of independent investigation, the probe was conducted with the goal of preventing recurrence of similar cases.
Going forward, CENIPA plans to issue a separate official position based on the results of this joint investigation. INNOSPACE plans to finalize the follow-up launch schedule as soon as technological improvement measures are completed and launch approval is obtained from the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA). The company intends to use already secured launch slots to pursue a follow-up launch in Brazil in the third quarter of this year.