courtesy of the company.
INNOSPACE (KS: 462350) has successfully completed the Launch Pad-Vehicle Interface Integrated System Test for the HANBIT-Nano launch vehicle.
The company independently developed a new portable launch pad, a key infrastructure for the satellite launch, and conducted the test at Samwooeco, the partner company responsible for manufacturing the launch pad, located in Gwangyang, South Korea.
The HANBIT-Nano launch vehicle is a two-stage orbital launcher designed to deploy payloads into a 500 km Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO). It features a 25-ton-thrust hybrid rocket engine in the first stage and a 3-ton-thrust methane engine in the second stage. INNOSPACE is set to conduct its first commercial launch in July of 2025, carrying payloads from five international customers, including the Federal University of Maranhão (UFMA) and Castro Leite Consultoria (CLC) in Brazil.
The Launch Pad-Vehicle Interface Integrated System Test comprehensively verifies the operational readiness of the launch vehicle and launch pad, covering processes from vehicle assembly and pad integration to vertical erection, propellant supply system checks, and final operational validation. During the test, INNOSPACE confirmed the mechanical and electrical interfaces between the launch pad and vehicle, the transporter erector launcher system, the detachment of the Umbilical, the fuel and oxidizer supply system, and the separation of the launch vehicle hold-down mechanism, ensuring technical reliability and operational stability.
The launch pad that successfully completed the test, is scheduled for maritime transportation to the Alcântara Space Center in Brazil on April 2. Upon arrival in May, the launch vehicle will undergo installation and final verification in the local environment to complete preparations for launch operations. In addition, the launch vehicle used in this test was the HANBIT-Nano Qualification Model (QM), which shares the same specifications—21.8 meters in height and 1.4 meters in diameter—as the Flight Model (FM) scheduled for launch in July.
“The Launch Pad-Vehicle Interface Integrated System Test marks a crucial milestone in the development of HANBIT-Nano,” said Soojong Kim, founder and CEO of INNOSPACE. “With this achievement, INNOSPACE’s proprietary technology and operational capabilities with our internally developed launch pad successfully validated, we are now fully committed to final launch preparations, ensuring the highest reliability in our launch services.”