[강기헌의 사이언스&] Tens of thousands of kilometers above the ground … Japan-made space elevator

On the 29th of last month, the Tanegashima Space Center of Kagoshima Prefecture, in the extreme south of Kyushu, Japan. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) fired a rocket H-IIA. The rocket climbed and landed the GOSAT-2 satellite in 16 minutes. After launching the first satellite in orbit, he successfully raised KhalifaSat at 600 km altitude in eight minutes. KalifatSat is a satellite that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has manufactured for environmental monitoring and marine observations, based on the technology of the Korean civilian satellite manufacturer Setraq Ai. Kalifasat was transferred to the Republic of Korea and, after the last inspection, went to the President of Japan. The UAE, which does not have its own launcher, has ordered satellite launches from JAXA.

The development of space technology in Japan is weakening. In the center is the JAXA. JAXA, established in October 2003, has integrated the three institutes of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, the Institute for Aerospace Technology Research and the Development Project. spatial. The history of space development in Japan is divided before and after the creation of JAXA.

JAXA is leading the development of launch technology, which is at the heart of space technology. After the H-IIA rocket fired at Calipersat, we also develop the H-III rocket. JAXA aims to reduce the launch rate. Currently, the launch of an H-IIA rocket costs about 10 billion yen (about 99.6 billion won) per episode, or 25 percent more than the world average. JAXA plans to reduce the launch cost to 5 billion yen (about 49.8 billion won) by developing the H-III rocket. It is a strategy to ensure competitiveness in the market for commercial satellite launchers. Professor Yoon Young-bin, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the Seoul National University, said, "Reducing the launch rate will allow us to have sufficient competitiveness in the global market."

JAXA also launches a challenge to the niche market based on projectile technology. It's a miniature rocket. The JAXA launched a "SS520" mini-rocket with a length of 10 m and a diameter of 50 cm in February of this year. It is the smallest rocket in the world equipped with satellites. The very small rocket orbit, developed by the University of Tokyo, has a very small satellite of several tens of centimeters. The satellite should be used to monitor natural disasters and crop growth. Rockets and satellites launched this time used components used in consumer electronics to reduce costs. JAXA will offer private companies a way to actively use the technology of very small rockets.

Ahn Jung-ki, senior researcher at the Hyundai Economic Research Institute, said: "The Japanese government's strategy is to strengthen international cooperation to increase technological competitiveness by securing core technologies such as rocket technology and developing the market. d & # 39; export ".

How has the JAXA, which has been around for 15 years, been able to develop so quickly? The main reason is the national leadership of the space industry. Since the creation of JAXA, the Japanese government has quickly changed its policy of space development. JAXA established the Basic Law on Space in 2008, three years after its entry into force, and established the basic plan for space the following year. Thus, the headquarters of the Space Development Strategy, headed by the Prime Minister responsible for the Japanese Cabinet, is created recently and top-down policy is established and implemented. The Japanese government has also launched a policy of space development with a government initiative, such as the creation of a room for space strategy and a space policy committee in 2012.

Kim Eun-jung, a researcher at the Korea Institute for Aerospace Research, said, "Japan's new space plan is evolving in the commercial interest while strengthening space activities in the area of ​​national security. 47 trillion won). "

Based on this leadership, JAXA continues to develop a technology that records "the world's first". A practical satellite for the collection of space debris using a robot arm developed by JAXA is representative. About 23,000 space wastes can be found on the ground and we will launch practical satellites and solve them.

JAXA is also experimenting with a space elevator by launching two small satellites with the research team of Shizuoka University. It is an experiment of moving an elevator model along a 10m long steel cable connected between satellites in space. This will allow us to develop a space elevator connecting satellites on the ground and geostationary satellites for tens of kilometers. Space elevators can significantly reduce the cost of freight transport in space. If you transport the goods in a space shuttle, it will cost about $ 22,000 per kilogram of freight, but will fall to about $ 100 (about 220,000 won) when you use a space elevator.

Collaboration between government and the private sector is also seen as a way for JAXA to achieve remarkable achievements in the space industry. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which received the project launch service from JAXA, is a representative example. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries was responsible for the production of the rockets ordered by JAXA, but the launch service was transferred from 2007. The company launched an H-2A rocket carrying the Japanese lunar missile in 2007. The Japanese government is in a difficult situation for private companies to embark on the development of space. Last August, the government tabled a bill to compensate for satellite accidents of private companies.

Lee Jae-min, a researcher at the Korea Institute of Assessment and Planning Science and Technology, said: "For the development of the Korean space industry, we must pursue a plan government-led space development and a policy of sharing private sector separation roles that needs industrialization. "

Kang Ki-heon reporter [email protected]