On May 17, KAIST and Hanwha Corporation announced that they will work together to build a joint research center to lead space technology research. With Hanwha investing 10 billion KRW into setting up the center, this will be the largest Korean space institution established jointly by a private business and an educational institution. The center will be established directly under the Office of Research Affairs of KAIST, in collaboration with Hanwha’s internal task force group, Space Hub. Space Hub was created in March with the goal to advance South Korea’s space industry. It is led by Dong-kwan Kim, the President of Hanwha Solutions, and includes members from Hanwha Aerospace and Hanwha Systems.

The first project that Space Hub and KAIST will work together on is developing inter-satellite link (ISL) technology. This is a crucial technology that allows low-orbit satellites to transfer data to each other by laser communication. Compared to traditional satellite technologies, this allows quick processing of high-capacity data among multiple satellites, and enables internet access in airplanes, ships, or even in remote areas without electricity. It is utilized in satellite communication and urban air mobility, a key business area of Hanwha Systems. According to industry estimation, the ISL industry will grow about 36% annually by 2040.

The joint space center’s research is expected to accelerate development and commercialization of space technology. KAIST and Hanwha will focus their work on areas such as rocket and satellite positioning technologies and space energy technology. A KAIST official noted that this joint research center will be a “significant milestone in the country’s history of space development”. The center is expected to become an industry-academic research hub in the “new space” era led by the private sector.