Update for 5 p.m. ET on Dec. 22: Innospace is aiming to launch the Spaceward mission today (Dec. 22) at 8 p.m. ET (0100 GMT on Dec. 23) after delays caused by a technical issue and bad weather.
South Korean startup Innospace is set to attempt its first orbital launch today (Dec. 22), and you can watch the action live.
Liftoff is currently scheduled for 8 p.m. EST (10 p.m. local time and 0100 GMT on Dec. 23) from the Alcantara Space Center in Brazil. Innospace's Hanbit-Nano rocket will aim to insert five small satellites for customers from Brazil and India into a 186-mile-high (300 kilometers) orbit and mark a first for a private Korean company.
Watch it live here at Space.com, courtesy of Innospace, or directly via the company. Coverage will begin at 7 p.m. EST (0000 GMT).
"Hanbit-Nano has been successfully rolled out from the integration facility and transported to the launch pad ahead of liftoff. Preparations for the Spaceward mission are right on track," Innospace said Wednesday (Dec. 16) in a post on the social media platform X.
The 57-foot-tall (17.3 meters) rocket is designed to be able to launch 198 pounds (90 kilograms) into a sun-synchronous orbit from Brazil. The rocket's first-stage hybrid engine burns paraffin and liquid oxygen while the upper stage uses methane and liquid oxygen or paraffin and liquid oxygen, depending on its configuration.
SPACEWARD | Mission UpdateWeather needs a bit more time. 🌧️⏳ Due to unfavorable weather conditions at the launch site, including rain and wind, the launch time has been moved by two hours.Updated Launch Time• Dec. 19, 17:00 (BRT)• Dec. 20, 05:00 (KST)• Dec. 20, 01:30…December 19, 2025
Innospace CEO Kim Soo-jong told Space.com at the International Astronautical Congress in Sydney, Australia, in October that the company was established in 2017 and employs 260 people.
"All of our technology is developed by ourselves. The engineers are Korean, and the development is fully indigenous," Kim said. "Korea has built an ecosystem to develop a launch vehicle. We work with more than 100 supply-chain companies in South Korea," he added.
Kim said Innospace is very focused on the global market. "We already have around 14 contracts with global satellite companies."
A lot is riding on this first launch. Kim said that Hanbit-Micro, an advanced model of Hanbit-Nano that can carry 375 pounds (170 kg) to orbit, is set to begin commercial flights early next year, should all go according to plan.
Today's launch was originally scheduled for Wednesday (Dec. 17), but Innospace pushed it back two days to replace a part in the cooling system of the rocket's first stage. Bad weather forced an additional delay.
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