The Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) on Wednesday said that it will spend 380.8 billion won ( equivalent to USD 274.8 million) for the next seven years to build three industrial parks for the space industry.
The KASA said that the Budget will be spent to build an industrial complex for space vehicles, Yonhap news agency reported.
The other two industrial parks will be built for the development of civilian satellites and the training of professionals for the space industry, added KASA.
South Korea aims to land a homegrown spacecraft on the moon in 2032 and Mars in 2045, with massive investments in space exploration.
ALSO READ: KASA unveils South Korea’s strategy for reusable space rocket technology
South Korea's new national space agency said that it is reportedly working to develop small reusable space rockets in collaboration with the private sector and explore one of the stable Lagrange points in a bid to become a top-five global space power. The news was official when, in a press briefing, Rho Kyung-won, deputy chief of the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA), said that the company has been planning to assign the reusable rocket development project to the private sector.
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According to SpaceX, the company is expected to transport over 90 per cent of all Earth's payloads to low-Earth orbit later this year. Currently, SpaceX's Falcon rocket is almost 80 per cent reusable, and its mega-rocket, 'Starship,' is projected to achieve close to 100 per cent reusability. Starship is anticipated to carry astronauts to the Moon during the crewed Artemis 3 mission in 2026. The spacecraft has undergone three test flights so far, with the fourth test flight scheduled to take place soon.
Two NASA astronauts including Indian-American Sunita Williams have said that they are confident Boeing's space capsule can return them safely despite leaks and engine trouble, the AP reported on Wednesday. The two NASA astronauts are staying longer at the International Space Station as engineers troubleshoot problems on Boeing's new space capsule that cropped up on the trip there.
Two weeks ago, NASA said it did not set a return date until testing on the ground was complete and said the astronauts were safe.
