Cape Canaveral: South Korea's fourth homegrown military spy satellite, launched from a US space base in Florida on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, successfully entered orbit, South Korea's Defense Ministry said Tuesday. The Falcon 9 lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station as planned and placed the reconnaissance satellite into orbit, 15 minutes after liftoff, according to the ministry.

According to Qatar News Agency, South Korea's Defense Ministry stated, "We plan to confirm whether the satellite operates normally through communication with a ground station." This synthetic aperture radar satellite is part of South Korea's strategic initiative to deploy five spy satellites by the end of this year, with the primary goal of enhancing surveillance capabilities over North Korea and reducing dependence on US satellite imagery.

The initiative began with the launch of South Korea's first spy satellite in December 2023, which was equipped with electro-optical and infrared sensors for capturing detailed images. Two additional satellites equipped with synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors, capable of collecting data irrespective of weather conditions, were launched last year. South Korea aims to launch the fifth and final satellite, also equipped with SAR sensors, later this year.