Nuri rocket, Danuri orbiter are biggest achievements of Yoon administration: science minister

Lee Jong-ho, minister of science and ICT, speaks during a press conference to mark his first anniversary in office at the ministry's headquarters in Sejong, Wednesday. Courtesy of Ministry of Science and ICT

By Baek Byung-yeul

One of the biggest achievements of the government, in the field of science and technology over the past year, since President Yoon Suk Yeol took office in May 2022, comes from the space sector. In particular the successful launches of the Nuri launch vehicle and the Danuri lunar orbiter, the minister of science and ICT said Wednesday.

“With the successful launch of the Nuri rocket in June last year and the transfer of launch vehicle technology to private companies, I believe the era of a private-led space economy has begun. Following the successful launch of Korea's first lunar orbiter, Danuri, into lunar orbit, we presented a blueprint for landing on Mars by 2045,” Lee Jong-ho, minister of science and ICT, said in a press conference in the ministry's headquarters in Sejong.

“We are also in the process of launching the space agency, a dedicated space development organization, and concluded the Korea-U.S. space alliance. This shows Korea's space technology has expanded beyond just research and development to the area of industry and security,” the minister said.

Giving his take on being in office for a year, he said his happiest moment was when Nuri was successfully launched.

“I became a minister in May last year and Nuri was launched in June. I was very worried that there would be a problem with the launch at a time when many people were struggling with COVID-19. When the launch was successful, I was so happy that I couldn't control myself,” he said.

“Korea has become one of the world's top seven space powers,” the minister said, emphasizing that the space achievements, including the successes of Nuri and Danuri, are among the achievements of the Yoon administration in science and technology over the past year.

The minister added that the government is also trying to strengthen its competitiveness in the emerging AI services market.

"In April, we prepared a plan to strengthen the technical and ethical capabilities of domestic hyper-scale AI, and started building a data center based on locally-developed high-performance and low-power AI semiconductors. We also started implementing a government digital platform utilizing domestic hyper-scale AI in April,” Lee said.

The minister added that the science and ICT ministry will continue to focus on coming up with sustainable policies.

“The job of the Ministry of Science and ICT is to prepare for the future of Korea. We must continue to be insightful and draw a sketch for the future of our country. We will create policies to make the country a safe and enjoyable place to work while advancing productivity,” Lee said.