Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) and Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (KASI) said on the 2nd that the CubeSat "K-RadCube," aboard NASA's crewed lunar exploration mission "Artemis II," was successfully launched.
K-RadCube headed into space at 7:35 a.m. (Korea time) on the 2nd from Kennedy Space Center in Florida via NASA's Space Launch System (SLS).
The satellite was launched mounted on the SLS launch vehicle and was deployed into high Earth orbit according to the flight sequence of the second-stage rocket, the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS). After the Orion spacecraft separated and immediately after the ICPS completed a maneuver to enter a disposal orbit, it separated successfully at an altitude of about 40,000 km at around 12:58 p.m. on the 2nd.
The mission operations center is currently preparing for initial communications with K-RadCube. To check the satellite's power generation status and whether the transmitter is operating, it plans to sequentially use a partner ground-station network overseas.
Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) and KASI note that, given the nature of CubeSats and high Earth orbit missions, communications may be temporarily uneven while the initial attitude stabilizes. Accordingly, they plan to conduct intensive control for two days after launch and closely check the satellite's condition. Ground-station support will mobilize infrastructure in four countries: Punta Arenas, Chile; Hawaii, United States; Maspalomas, Spain; and Singapore.