(LEAD) S. Korean Earth-observation satellite enters orbit after being sep...

(LEAD) satellite-launch

(LEAD) S. Korean Earth-observation satellite enters orbit after being separated from launch vehicle

(ATTN: REWRITES headline, lead; UPDATES with more details throughout)

SEOUL, May 3 (Yonhap) -- A South Korean Earth-observation satellite, launched from a U.S. space base in California, entered low-Earth orbit Sunday after being separated from the launch vehicle, according to authorities.

SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California, at 11:59 p.m. Saturday (local time), carrying 45 payloads.

The satellite was separated from the launch vehicle about one hour after liftoff, according to the Korea AeroSpace Administration.

The mission has been dubbed CAS500-2, after the primary satellite called Compact Advanced Satellite (CAS) 500-2 from Korea Aerospace Industries. The next-generation midsized satellite No. 2 was developed for disaster monitoring and agricultural observation.

The satellite was expected to make its first communication with a ground station in Norway about 15 minutes after it was separated from the launch vehicle.

The CAS500-2 had been originally scheduled to launch on a Russian Soyuz rocket in 2022 but the deployment was delayed following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

This image captured from SpaceX's official X page shows the takeoff of a Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California, on May 2, 2026, carrying a South Korean-developed satellite CAS500-2. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

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