Next-generation medium satellite No. 4 will be launched in the United States in July.
Korea AeroSpace Administration, the Rural Development Administration, and the Korea Forest Service said on the 21st that they held a "pre-transport review meeting" for next-generation medium satellite No. 4 at the headquarters of Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang.
Next-generation medium satellite No. 4 is the fourth satellite in the next-generation medium satellite program to secure a 500-kilogram-class medium satellite standard platform developed with domestic proprietary technology.
The meeting was held to make a final check of the technical readiness and safety of the transport process before moving the satellite to the launch site. It is a procedure to confirm whether it is appropriate to proceed to the actual transport stage after completing satellite development, performance testing, and environmental testing.
Attendees included officials from the Rural Development Administration and the Korea Forest Service, which will use the satellite, as well as Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), the lead agency overseeing the program, and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), which is responsible for payload development.
Next-generation medium satellite No. 4 will begin transport next month and is scheduled to be launched in July aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 launch vehicle from Vandenberg in the United States.
After launch, it will be used to observe agricultural and forest conditions over wide areas and to monitor changes in crop yields and forest status. Based on satellite data, the Rural Development Administration and the Korea Forest Service plan to enhance monitoring capabilities in the agriculture and forestry sectors.