• Journal of Aerospace System Engineering
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.28-34
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• 2022

In 2021, Virgin Orbit converted a 747-400 aircraft into an air launch platform, and successfully launched it twice in February and July. Compared to the existing ground launch, interest in the air launch is increasing due to its great utility, such as its independence from the launch location or weather, cost reducing factor, shorter launch preparation time, and its benefit pursuant to altitude and speed. Additionally, as small satellites have similar performance to mid/large satellites in the past due to the miniaturization and precision of electronic equipment, small satellite launches are expected to dominate in the future. In this paper, institutional certification methods such as domestic, overseas, civilian and military airworthiness certification regulations/procedures are reviewed to ensure flight safety of aerial projectiles using large domestic civil aircraft, and applicable civil and military airworthiness certification technology standards are reviewed and analyzed. Additionally, we will review and suggest effective airworthiness certification application plans that reflect the reality, and present airworthiness certification standards (draft) for aerial launch vehicles, by analyzing applicable airworthiness certification technical standards when remodeling aerial launch vehicles.

• Journal of Advanced Navigation Technology
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.519-527
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• 2023

Air-launch means launching from aircraft such as fighter jets, and has various advantages, such as cost reduction and less environmental/weather impact during launch. However, there are no air-launch satellite in Korea. Examining air-based launch satellite and anti-satellite missiles operated and developed by foreign private companies and various countries confirmed the necessity of domestic research and development. In South Korea, various research activities, including satellite launch system design and development approaches for different launch platforms, have been carried out mainly by academia. Development of upward maneuver air launch technology which is launched in the air when the aircraft is moving upward is suggested. Additionally, an introduction to wind tunnel tests for safety separation verification is provided. A new concept for a test facility has been suggested to conduct drop tests.

• Journal of Advanced Navigation Technology
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.267-272
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• 2021

The end of the ROK-U.S. missile guidelines opened up the possibility of developing space launch vehicles for various platforms based on air and sea. In particular, the air-based space launch vehicle is an essential space power projection capability compared to the ground-based space launch vehicle in consideration of the geographical location of the Korean Peninsula, such as the deployment of various satellite orbits and the timely launch of satellite. In addition, compared to the ground-based launch vehicle, the cost reduction effect is large, and it has the merit of energy gain because it can be launched with the advantage of the aircraft's altitude and speed. Therefore, in this paper, the necessity of air-based space launch vehicle in the strategic environment of the Korean Peninsula is clearly presented, and through technology trend analysis of various air launch vehicle, the three methods are proposed to have the most efficient air-based space launch vehicle capability in the Korean situation.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Aeronautical & Space Sciences
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• v.49 no.8
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• pp.671-680
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• 2021

This paper deals with the contents of designing and producing reconnaissance hardware and software, and verifying the functions after being installed on the CanSat platform and ground stations. The main reconnaissance mission is largely composed of two things: terrain search that renders the surrounding terrain in 3D using radar, GPS, and IMU sensors, and real-time detection of major objects through optical camera image analysis. In addition, data analysis efficiency was improved through GUI software to enhance the completeness of the CanSat system. Specifically, software that can check terrain information and object detection information in real time at the ground station was produced, and mission failure was prevented through abnormal packet exception processing and system initialization functions. Communication through LTE and AWS server was used as the main channel, and ZigBee was used as the auxiliary channel. The completed CanSat was tested for air fall using a rocket launch method and a drone mount method. In experimental results, the terrain search and object detection performance was excellent, and all the results were processed in real-time and then successfully displayed on the ground station software.