At the Korea Defense Space Association's summer academic conference, held in Busan from the 8th to the 10th, exhibitions by companies and research institutions at the cutting edge of domestic space technology also drew visitors' attention. This year's event featured exhibition booths from six organizations, including Hanwha Systems, MathWorks, Remphos, KCEI, E&R, and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) Space Research Institute.
Hanwha Systems, the only large corporation to set up an exhibition space, introduced its project to develop very-low-orbit synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites for Earth observation. The project, pursued by Hanwha Systems' space business division since 2023, plans to launch constellation satellites via a SpaceX launch vehicle this December. Hanwha Systems' business plan is to have the constellation satellites, once settled in Earth orbit, observe the Earth and provide the resulting photos and imagery to the military and academia. Hanwha Systems plans to first provide surveillance and reconnaissance imagery to the Korean Air Force and Coast Guard.
Hanwha Systems' SAR satellite weighs 150 kg per unit and has a resolution of 0.5 meters or less. It offers three imaging modes: spot, strip, and scan. It also provides three observation widths: 2.5 km, 5 km, and 45 km. A feature of the satellite is that its body and payload are designed as an integrated unit, enabling weight reduction and efficient storage in the launch vehicle. Using radar, it can collect high-resolution imagery even in nighttime environments or bad weather, conditions that are difficult for optical satellites to observe.
"The developer of constellation satellites must have the production capacity to manufacture large quantities in a short period," said Song Sung-chan, executive director at Hanwha Systems. "Hanwha Systems has invested approximately 100 billion won and built the Jeju Space Center, which can manufacture 100 satellites per line."
Remphos, founded in 2014, presented batteries mounted on space launch vehicles. Remphos, which began its business developing batteries for electronic cigarettes, first participated in a project led by the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) in 2016 and has been making lithium-ion batteries for launch vehicles for 10 years. It is currently participating as a partner in Hanwha Aerospace's launch vehicle development project. Next year, a launch vehicle equipped with a Remphos-manufactured battery is set to be launched into space for the first time.
"The biggest advantage of Remphos batteries is their price competitiveness, at 60% of the price of finished products from overseas companies," said Yoon Ki-kwon, vice president of Remphos. "Also, as a homegrown company, we have established a real-time communication environment with domestic space-related institutions and are working in close coordination with them."
The KAIST Space Research Institute introduced its subsidiary organizations to visitors attending the conference. Visitors showed particular interest in the Space Technology Innovation Talent Development Center that the institute is establishing. Set to launch in 2029, the Space Technology Innovation Talent Development Center is an educational institution aimed at cultivating the next generation of space-related talent. Visitors to the Space Research Institute's exhibition booth exchanged views on the specialized equipment and educational programs to be secured within the Space Technology Innovation Talent Development Center.
