South Korea plans Mars landing in 2045 as space agency debuts

SEOUL (Reuters) -- South Korea plans to make a Mars landing by 2045 and spend 100 trillion won ($72.6 billion) until then on space exploration, President Yoon Suk Yeol said on Thursday at the launch of the country's first space agency.

The Korea Aerospace Administration (KASA) will lead the country's "space economy," with hundreds of businesses and enterprises working to catapult South Korea into the ranks of the world's top five space powers, Yoon said.

"KASA will usher in a new space era by cultivating experts while intensively supporting the aerospace industry ecosystem and fostering challenging and innovative R&D," Yoon said. The country's first lunar lander is planned for 2032.

South Korea became the seventh country to own an indigenous space launch vehicle and satellite development technology with the launch of the Nuri rocket last May, putting a commercial grade satellite in orbit.

The agency is aimed at streamlining policy and development functions shared among different government ministries and will bring under its structure the aerospace research institute that developed the Nuri and its precursor space launch vehicles.

South Korea plans at least three more space launches by 2027 and has plans to launch military satellites.

Yoon's announcement highlights the increasing efforts Asian nations are putting into space programs for practical reasons, such as honing rocket technology and bolstering national pride.

On Monday, North Korea launched a rocket but failed to put its second military spy satellite in orbit, blaming a new type of engine that malfunctioned. But one expert called the attempt a "huge leap" in the heavily sanctioned country's race to space.

South Korea, Japan and the United States condemned the North's