Korea’s 1st Meteorological Satellite in Orbit

COMS will provide 16 kinds of meteorological information around the clock

Korea’s first meteorological satellite, the Communication, Ocean and Meteorological Satellite (COMS), has been successfully put into orbit, making the nation the 7th country to have its own meteorological satellite.
The Ariane 5-ECA rocket carrying the satellite, dubbed “COMS,” lifted off from Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, at 6:41 a.m. on June 27(KST), and the satellite separated from the rocket about 32 minutes later before entering into transfer orbit.
COMS successfully made its first contact with the ground station in Dongara, Australia, at 7:19 a.m. and was confirmed to be in a normal state. The satellite is to be put on geostationary orbit 36,000 km above the equator and 128.2 degrees east longitude on July 6, officials of the National Meteorological Satellite Center (NMSC) said.
The satellite is to undergo an in-orbit-test (IOT) for about six months after reaching geostationary orbit. The IOT involves an overall check-up of the satellite body and the meteorological payload, transmitting and receiving units with ground stations, and the quality of meteorological observation images. Observations from COMS will be made available for meteorological services in early next year after finishing test operations.
COMS is a midsize multipurpose satellite of 2.5-ton, which has been in development since 2003. The Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) established NMSC in Jincheon, Chungcheongbuk-do, in 2009 as part of its preparatory efforts to ensure the stable operation of COMS and effectively utilize and analyze meteorological observations from the satellite.
KMA has jointly undertaken the satellite development project with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs and the Korea Communications Commission at a cost of 354.9 billion won. Among others, the development of the meteorological observation system, which cost approximately 75 billion won, was made by KMA, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, the National Institute of Meteorological Research, Astrium of France and ITT of the United States.
The meteorological system of COMS has a visible observation channel and four infrared observation channels to offer meteorological observation services around the clock. Utilizing the homegrown Meteorological Data Processing System of COMS, KMA plans to provide 16 kinds of meteorological information ranging from meteorological phenomena to the outbreak of Asian Dust in the Mongolian and Chinese desert areas to sea and ground surface temperatures.
One of COMS’s major duties is the provision of meteorological services, which is closely related to people’s daily lives.
Korea is faced with difficulties in obtaining oceanic meteorological information since the nation is surrounded by sea on three sides and it is limited in collecting meteorological observation information via the existing observation systems since there are many mountainous areas too treacherous to approach. Korea has such woes as the delayed collection of information from foreign satellites and a lack of availability of abundant information on areas surrounding Korea. The nation has had a pressing need for a steady supply of quality meteorological observation materials required to identify and predict the occurrence of meteorological phenomena.
What is a way of supplementing a geographical limit of making meteorological observations, aggressively coping with meteorological disasters and providing value-added meteorological services in a swift and precise fashion? The answer is for the nation to operate its own meteorological satellite. Recognizing this necessity, KMA began to study the possible development of a satellite in the late 1990s. In 2002, when it was contained in the national mid- and long-term space development plan, the meteorological satellite development project went into high gear.
Globally, there are six countries with meteorological satellites ― the United States, Russia, India, European Union, Japan and China. COMS has changed Korea from a country that only receives meteorological information to one that may now transmit it, enhancing its global standing.
COMS’S EFFECTS ― Currently, the KMA receives meteorological observation information from Japan’s geostationary satellite MTSAT-2 every 30 minutes. It also collects meteorological data from the 12 foreign satellites. The nation’s dependence on foreign countries for obtaining meteorological data has caused many disadvantages and inconveniences, including a failure to obtain information on a specific district at a given time. In particular, the nation has faced difficulties caused by the lack of a meteorological satellite in the case of the outbreak of downpours and a typhoon approaching the Korean Peninsula during summer.
How hard does it make weather forecasts in a situation where meteorological data are made available at a delayed pace every 30 minutes?
The launch of COMS is expected to bring about tremendous changes in such areas as the shortening of geostationary meteorological observations and the expansion of information, the expansion of analyzing satellite observation data and the provision of satellite observation data to foreign users.
Among others, the biggest change the meteorological satellite will bring is concentrating surveillance on HIW (High-Impact Weather) happening around the Korean Peninsula. The COMS will be able to allow KMA to make meteorological observations on its own more than twice as frequent as the Japanese satellite’s provision of data allowed.
Numerical weather predictions via supercomputers will contribute to enhancing the accuracy of weather forecasts by utilizing data from the meteorological satellite.
Analyzing meteorological observation information via the satellite is expected to be expanded. A satellite weather data processing system has already been developed by Korean experts prior to the launching of the satellite. The system will produce 16 types of data, including the temperature of the sea water, clouds and vapor amounts in the upper layers of the atmosphere.
KMA plans to expand the provision of meteorological services to weather authorities in the Asia and Pacific regions step by step.
HUB of SATELLITE R&D ― NMSC, manned by 43 experts, has satellite planning, satellite operation and satellite analysis departments. NMSC is charged with all responsibilities over the skies of the Korean Peninsula via the satellite, including the receiving and distributing of satellite meteorological observation data, treating and interpreting of observation data, production of weather forecasts using satellite observation information, the development of next-generation meteorological satellites, international academic cooperation and joint study, and the provision of meteorological services to users. nw

A rocket carrying Korea’s first meteorological satellite blasts off from Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana on June 27

(above photo) The National Meteorological Satellite Center (NMSC), charged with all responsibilities over the skies of the Korean Peninsula via the satellite,; KMA Administrator Chun Byung-seong,; and a meteorological image sent for the first time by Korea’s first meteorological satellite, COMS.