Perigee Aerospace
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2018[1] |
| Headquarters | , |
Key people | Yoon Shin, CEO[1] |
Number of employees | 30 [2] |
| Website | perigee |
Perigee Aerospace is a private developer and manufacturer of orbital and sub-orbital launch vehicles located in Daejeon, South Korea. The company was formally established in 2018, but work began in 2012,[1] initially with the launch of sounding rockets.[3]
Perigee Aerospace employs 30 people. It develops the small orbital rocket Blue Whale 1 with a maiden flight scheduled for July 2020. The company also plans to develop a larger rocket.[2]
Vehicles
Blue Whale 1
| Function | Small-lift Orbital launch vehicle |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Perigee Aerospace |
| Country of origin | South Korea |
| Cost per launch | US$2 million[4] |
| Size | |
| Height | 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in)[4] |
| Diameter | 760 mm (30 in)[4] |
| Mass | 1,790 kg (3,950 lb)[4] |
| Capacity | |
| Payload to 500km SSO | |
| Mass | 50 kg (110 lb)[4] |
| Payload to 500km LEO | |
| Mass | 63 kg (139 lb)[4] |
| Launch history | |
| Status | In Development |
| Launch sites | Whalers Way Orbital Launch Complex |
| First flight | July 2020 (planned) |
| First stage | |
| Specific impulse | 288s (ground), 348s (vacuum) |
| Burn time | 150s |
| Propellant | LOX/LNG |
The two-stage[1] Blue Whale 1 is planned to become the smallest orbital rocket in the world with a mass of only 1790 kg. Launching from a pad owned by Southern Launch at Whalers Way in South Australia it can deliver up to 50 kg to a sun-synchronous orbit with an altitude of 500 km.[2] The maiden flight is planned for July 2020. Perigee Aerospace plans to launch up to 40 Blue Whale 1 rockets per year[1] at a price of US$2 million.[4]
Sounding Rockets
According to an interview posted on the website of Explore University, an educational program by Dong-A Science[5], Perigee Aerospace also plans to launch a sounding rocket developed in collaboration with KAIST.[6] The exact specifications and launch date are yet to be confirmed.
See also
- Rocket Lab – New Zealand and American public spaceflight company
- Firefly Aerospace – American private aerospace company
- Virgin Orbit – Defunct American aerospace company
References
- ^ a b c d e "Korean firm Perigee plans first South Australian rocket launch". 28 October 2019.
- ^ a b c "Backed by Samsung, South Korean startup Perigee aims for 2020 maiden launch". 23 October 2019.
- ^ "South Korean rocket startup to launch from South Australia". Retrieved 2020-02-02.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Perigee Aerospace Inc". Retrieved 2020-02-02.
- ^ "탐험대학·시민과학풀씨 참가자 모집". 2020-03-27. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
- ^ "신동윤 대표 미니인터뷰". 2020-04-08. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
