The Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) says it's lost contact with the nation’s first multipurpose satellite.

The state-run research institute said Friday that its surface uplink with the Arirang-One satellite was lost on Sunday.

The institute said experts are working on finding out the cause of the problem and restoring communications but have been unable to reach the orbiting satellite.

If contact cannot be restored, the satellite may be declared lost.

Since its launch in 1999, Arirang-One has transmitted images of the Earth’s surface as it circles the globe 14 and a half times a day. It has maintained an orbit at an altitude of 685 kilometers for the past eight years.