The Korean launch vehicle Nuri has completed preparations for its fourth launch. This fourth Nuri carries the largest number of satellites among all Nuris to date, and for the first time a private company led its production. If technical checks and the weather around Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Jeolla Province, are suitable for launch, Nuri will depart for space at 12:54 a.m. on the 27th.

On the 25th, the Aerospace Administration and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute announced that they completed the work of ‘verticalizing’ Nuri on the Naro Space Center launch pad at 1:36 p.m. that day. Verticalization is the procedure of taking a launch vehicle, for which all indoor preparations have been completed, outdoors just before flight and standing it on the launch pad.

That morning at 9 a.m., Nuri was loaded onto a vibration-free vehicle and rolled out of the assembly building inside the Naro Space Center, arriving at the launch pad at 10:42 a.m. The distance between the assembly building and the pad, connected by a paved road, is 1.8㎞. This distance was covered over about 1 hour and 40 minutes. In other words, Nuri was moved much more slowly than walking speed. It was a safety measure.

The transport of Nuri was originally scheduled to begin at 7:20 a.m. However, with rain in the forecast, the start time was delayed. As a result, the completion of transport to the pad was also somewhat later. The Aerospace Administration plans to keep the launch time at 12:54 a.m. on the 27th as originally planned.

With verticalization complete, the Aerospace Administration began in the afternoon the work of connecting Nuri to the ‘umbilical tower’ with various cables. The work is expected to be finished by the morning of the 26th at the latest. The umbilical tower is a green tower 48ｍ tall standing on the launch pad, equipped with facilities that supply Nuri with power and propellants (fuel·oxidizer).

If no anomalies appear in the checks centered on the umbilical tower, the next major step is to convene the Nuri Launch Management Committee. The committee is scheduled to meet on the evening of the 26th. It will make the final decision on when to launch Nuri. In this process, it will consider technical check results, weather, and the approach of space objects, among other factors. The Aerospace Administration plans to brief the conclusions of the committee at 8:15 p.m. on the 26th.

If the Launch Management Committee announces that Nuri will be launched as scheduled at 12:54 a.m. on the 27th, procedures to load fuel (kerosene) and oxidizer (liquid oxygen) into the Nuri rocket body will begin at around 9 p.m. on the 26th. An automated computer countdown will begin 10 minutes before liftoff. If no issues arise in this process, Nuri will at last leave the ground and soar toward the sky.

Nuri carries a total of 13 satellites, the most of any Nuri to date. They include the third next-generation medium satellite, weighing 516㎏ and designed to observe auroras and space plasma, and 12 small satellites (CubeSats) with a combined mass of 79㎏. The target orbital altitude is 600㎞.

A notable feature of the fourth Nuri launch is that the system integrator Hanwha Aerospace served as the prime party overseeing launch vehicle production. A system integrator is a private firm that receives a transfer of Nuri know-how from the Korea Aerospace Research Institute. Until the third launch in 2023, the institute was responsible for producing the Nuri launch vehicle, but this time Hanwha Aerospace has taken over that role.

The Aerospace Administration stated, “The schedule of future Nuri-related work may change depending on weather conditions.” According to the weather agency's forecast, there is not expected to be rain or strong winds around the Naro Space Center through dawn on the 27th that would hinder the launch.