South Korea's locally developed Earth observation nanosatellite has been put into orbit after being launched from a space center in New Zealand as part of Seoul’s plan to create a satellite constellation by 2027. 

According to the Ministry of Science and ICT on Wednesday, the satellite, named NEONSAT-1, successfully separated from the launch vehicle at 8:22 a.m., about 50 minutes after liftoff.

The satellite was launched from a spaceport in Mahia at 10:32 a.m. Wednesday local time, or 7:32 a.m. Wednesday South Korean time on Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket. 

The launch was originally set for 7:08 a.m. but it was delayed due to the potential risk of a collision with another space vehicle.

The ministry later confirmed that the nation’s King Sejong Station in Antarctica succeeded in making contact with the satellite at 2:13 p.m. and 3:44 p.m.

The NEONSAT-1 is the first of eleven nanosatellites that South Korea plans to use to form a satellite constellation, which will monitor and take images of the Korean Peninsula and its surrounding areas which will help the government swiftly respond to natural disasters or any threat to nation security.

South Korea plans to launch five more nanosatellites in June 2026 and another five in September 2027 on the homegrown Nuri space rocket.