South Korea's Nuriho rocket is undergoing vertical assembly at the Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Jeolla Province, for its fourth launch. 2025.11.25 [Provided by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute. 

With the successful fourth launch of Nuriho (KSLV-Ⅱ) on the 27th, South Korea has ushered in the era of private-led space exploration.

Experts have evaluated that Nuriho, built for the first time under private leadership, embarking on a journey to space marks a significant milestone for South Korea's space technology independence and the dawn of the commercial launch vehicle era.

Professor Hur Hwan-il of Chungnam National University stated, "The most significant aspect is that a launch vehicle, primarily developed by a private company, Hanwha Aerospace, has succeeded," and added, "The third Space Development Promotion Plan aimed to usher in the New Space era, meaning a private-led space age that stimulates the space economy, and this is a prime example demonstrating its realization."

Professor Lee Chang-jin of Konkuk University commented, "This signifies that private companies are actively engaging in launch vehicle development, marking our entry into the New Space era," and emphasized, "We must continuously maintain this private sector involvement to ultimately lead to the development of private-led launch vehicles as desired by the nation."

Assessments suggest that Nuriho has moved beyond mere testing and entered a phase of rigorously verifying its reliability and sustainability for private commercialization.

Professor Bang Hyo-chung of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) remarked, "By conducting around 10 repeated launches to consistently verify performance, we can officially commence services once its reliability is sufficiently proven," adding, "The most significant meaning lies in the process of confirming our nation's unique space transportation capabilities through this fourth launch."

Experts advised that future launches should significantly expand the scope of private sector involvement and further advance the technology.

Professor Hur noted, "Japan transferred all aspects to the private sector over 20 years ago, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries now leads all launch services," urging, "We, too, must, as originally planned, enable companies to effectively utilize the accumulated technology from the government, and companies must prepare to become independent with the transferred technology."

They stressed that to compete with advanced space nations in the New Space era, enhancing the economic viability of launch vehicles is crucial.

Former President Kim Seung-jo of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, a key figure in the success of Naro-ho, stated, "All competitive rockets worldwide are moving towards becoming manufactured goods, not works of art," and added, "Our conditions must also be shaped in a direction that allows the private sector to anticipate profitability."

Professor Bang also commented, "We are 50 years behind China and Japan," and urged, "We must continue to reduce launch costs and further enhance the performance of core components in launch vehicles to secure cost-effective launch vehicle technology."

Yonhap News