South Korea's first reconnaissance satellite approved to combat North

South Korea's first reconnaissance satellite has been approved for combat, playing a critical role in the early detection of North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying South Korea's first indigenous spy satellite lifts off from the. Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Dec. 1, 2023. [SPACEX]

South Korea's first reconnaissance satellite was approved for combat and will commence surveillance operations, meaning it will be able to capture images of North Korea at any time and place.

Military authorities expect the satellite to act as the “eye” of South Korea's Kill Chain pre-emptive strike system and significantly enhance the country’s monitoring capabilities.

The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said Wednesday that the military reconnaissance satellite had passed a combat suitability assessment from the country's Defense Ministry the previous day and completed system development. Launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Dec. 2 of last year, the satellite has since undergone initial checks, space orbit tests and operational evaluations.

The satellite is the first of five planned under a scheme code-named “425 Project,” which aims to deploy a constellation of four satellites equipped with high-performance Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and one with Electro-Optical/Infrared (EO/IR) capabilities.

The first satellite, an EO/IR model, orbits the Korean Peninsula twice daily at consistent times in a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 400 kilometers (248 miles) to 600 kilometers. It scans North Korea once during the day, using an EO camera, and once at night with an IR camera. With a resolution of approximately 30 centimeters (11.8 inches), it ranks among the world’s best sub-meter resolution satellites, according to military authorities, capable of detecting objects smaller than a sheet of newspaper as a single point.

“The world-class resolution allows for precise analysis of various targets,” DAPA explained.

The military launched the second SAR satellite in April, with plans to launch a third one in the second half of the year. Once the full array of four SAR satellites — less affected by weather conditions due to their independence from visible light — is operational, South Korea’s surveillance of North Korea will become even more robust.

“Suspicious findings from the SAR satellite can be cross-checked with the EO/IR satellite, providing complementary capabilities,” an official from the Defense Ministry said.

As part of a follow-up to the 425 Project, the military plans to deploy five or more additional medium to large satellites and 30 microsatellites before the early 2030s. The expanded network will aim to monitor North Korea at intervals of less than 30 minutes.

The reinforcement of this surveillance network is linked to the Kill Chain, which is central to the current government's three-axis defense system that emphasizes the capacity for pre-emptive strikes on North Korea in a case of emergency. The reconnaissance satellite plays a critical role in the early detection of the growing threats posed by North Korea's advancing nuclear and missile capabilities.

“By complementarily operating the military reconnaissance satellites and microsatellite systems, we will maximize our independent surveillance and reconnaissance assets, ensuring overwhelming superiority over North Korean satellites,” said Jeong Gyu-heon, director-general of the space command and C4I program at DAPA.

BY SEO JI-EUN, LEE KEUN-PYUNG [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]