By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter
DAEJEON ― South Korea, as a late starter in the global space competition, must seek to leverage its strength in information and communication technology to create a niche, according to the head of a leading space industry organization.
In a news conference on the sidelines of the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Daejeon, Monday, Berndt Feuerbacher, president of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF), said the country must integrate itself into a broader range of international efforts to secure more markets for its space technologies.
To encourage cooperation between the space programs backed by developing nations and space industry newcomers, the IAF is planning to form regional groups for the Asia-Pacific, Latin America and Africa regions to allow the countries a framework to share their advancements and pursue common goals.
``The groups will act as the instruments for countries to make goals on a regional scale, and define problems and develop technologies that are particularly suited for particular regions. This would enable various regions to operate on a higher level in space technology,'' Feuerbacher said.
``The possibility of cooperation in the space industry will grow because of multiple reasons. The complexity of space activities is increasing, and as stated in the Augustine Report, the adequate funding of space programs has become a difficult challenge due to the financial crisis.''
The advent of climate change and other global issues are also requiring countries to cooperate better in space technology, which is the ``natural global tool'' to fight those problems, Feuerbacher said.
Most notably, satellites are now being increasingly deployed to observe Earth and measure carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emission.
``The strongest trend in space tech is that now all doors are open for international cooperation, and I think the way Korea is developing its own technologies and opening niches and specialties using its prowess as a world leader in IT (information technology) is a good method to go for finding markets,'' Feuerbacher said.
Feuerbacher didn't comment specifically about market segments Korea would be well-suited for targeting, other than acknowledging a potential strength in the small satellite area, but said that the country's ``coherent'' space program is inspiring confidence.
``Korea has a lively and dynamic space program that has been built up in consecutive phases in a very intelligent manner, starting with small satellites and going up to Earth observation satellites and geostationary satellites that are now under construction,'' Feuerbacher said, adding that information technology is becoming more crucial for the space industry due to the increasing efforts to replace existing solutions with more effective and cheaper alternatives.
Korea is a latecomer in the intensifying Asian space race, but is intent on moving up the pack. The country has recently announced a plan to spend around 24 billion won (about $20.5 million) to enhance the country's capabilities in the field of space exploration.
Korea also plans to have a lunar probe by 2025, as part of its participation in international efforts for moon exploration.
Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), the country's space agency, will also be getting funding of 1 trillion won-plus to develop a new space rocket, the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-II, which is expected to lift-off from the Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Jeolla Province, sometime after 2018.
The Russian-Korean made KSLV-1 was launched in August, which was the opening act for the brand new spaceport, but failed to deliver its payload satellite into orbit. KARI officials are aiming for KSLV-II to be fully locally developed.
``This is a very significant meeting with more than 3,000 space agency leaders, academics and industry officials around the world gathering to discuss the industry's future. Daejeon's hosting of the event will improve Korea's international image as a country seriously devoted to space technology,'' said Lee Joo-jin, president of KARI.