The ultra-small CubeSat ‘KMU ET-02’, developed by the Next-Generation Communication Innovation Convergence Project Team (Director Park Jun-seok) at Kookmin University (President Jeong Seung Ryul), will be loaded onto the Nuri 6th launch vehicle scheduled for mid-June 2027.

The Nuri 6th launch sub-payload satellite competition, conducted as part of the ‘Korean Launch Vehicle Advancement Project’ led by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute and the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, aimed to select satellites with mission capabilities applicable to the public sector while enhancing domestic satellite development capabilities and the use of domestically produced components.

KMU ET-02, jointly developed by Kookmin University, Korea Aerospace University, and Quaternion Co., Ltd., was evaluated as a model capable of simultaneously demonstrating forest, disaster, and environmental monitoring capabilities alongside AI-based satellite operation technology. This selection is significant as it establishes a foundation for the microsatellite, created through university-industry collaboration, to serve as a verification platform for public, research, and educational purposes.

KMU ET-02 is a 6U-class ultra-small CubeSat operating in a sun-synchronous orbit approximately 500 km above the Earth. It incorporates the latest ‘semantic next-generation communication architecture,’ and an Edge AI-based semantic inference model will be installed onboard.

This design enables the satellite to verify a ‘semantic satellite communication system’. Rather than merely transmitting captured imagery, the satellite itself will first analyze and summarize key objects or anomalies, then transmit the necessary information to the ground station.

Additionally, it carries a 4-channel multispectral camera, including near-infrared (NIR), to observe forest tree species, vegetation, and moisture conditions, performing public surveillance tasks such as early detection of disaster signs like wildfires and landslides. To achieve this, a multi-NPU-based onboard AI computing structure and model lightweighting/optimization technology tailored for the space environment are applied.

Through these technologies, the Kookmin University satellite plans to enhance efficiency by utilizing next-generation satellite communications capable of faster and more accurate information delivery with minimal communication volume.

Satellite development will commence in earnest from 2026. Following assembly of the flight model (FM) and functional/environmental testing, it is scheduled to be launched aboard the Nuri rocket's sixth launch vehicle in 2027. Successful operation of KMU ET-02 is expected to contribute not only to public sector technology verification—such as early disaster detection (wildfires, landslides) and monitoring ecological/water resource changes—but also to the standardization and expanded openness of national space data.

Kookmin University, Korea Aerospace University, and Quaternion Co., Ltd. plan to link the entire satellite development and operation process with the Next-Generation Communication Innovation Convergence University Project's curriculum, graduation research, and field training. They also intend to utilize it for industry-academia joint research and international cooperation. This will cultivate practical experts with micro-satellite development experience and lay the groundwork for enhancing Korea's competitiveness in space AI and micro-satellite technology.

Park Jun Seok, Director of KMU's Next-Generation Communications Project, stated, “This selection officially recognizes the microsatellite development ecosystem built collaboratively by the university and industry within the national space development framework.” He added, “Through KMU ET-02, we will demonstrate core technologies essential for forest and disaster monitoring, along with AI-based meaning-centric next-generation communication technology, contributing to innovation in the national public satellite sector.”