Gyeonggi Province Promotes Climate Satellite Launch…Leading Scientific Response to the Climate Crisis

Gyeonggi Province is promoting the launch of a "climate satellite" to scientifically address the climate crisis.

Kim Dong-yeon, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, announced this plan during the "New Space Era, Climate Satellite Forum" held at the Dasan Hall of the Gyeonggi Provincial Government on the 27th, stating that this would be one of the key tasks to be actively pursued in the latter half of his administration.

At the forum, Governor Kim said, "A new driving force for South Korea's growth is emerging in the form of 'New ABC' – Aerospace, Bio, and Climate Tech." He added, "Gyeonggi Province is playing a leading role in bio and climate change response, and through this satellite launch plan, we will also realize a bold vision in the aerospace field."

Governor Kim explained that the Gyeonggi satellite plan has three significant meanings.

First, along with climate insurance and climate funds, the climate satellite launch is the most scientific method of responding to the climate crisis, enabling accurate monitoring and analysis of climate change.

Second, this satellite launch plan marks an important step for Gyeonggi Province to lead South Korea’s future industries in the space sector, closely related to IT, big data, communications, and defense industries.

Lastly, he added that the plan would lay the foundation for contributing to industrial development through collaboration and synergy with global satellite launch entities.

The forum was attended by over 300 participants, including members of the provincial council, private experts, provincial and municipal officials, the Carbon Neutrality Support Center, and residents. It began with a lecture by science communicator Kwak Byung-soo on "The Present and Future of Satellites," followed by an expert panel discussion.

The panel discussion was chaired by Jeong Soo-jong, Director of the Climate Tech Center at Seoul National University, and included participants such as Kim Kyung-geun, Director of the Satellite Systems Division at the Agency for Defense Development, Lee Sang-gyu, Senior Researcher at the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, Oh Hyun-woong, Director of the Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation at Korea Aerospace University, Nam Myung-yong, CEO of Lumir Co., Ltd., and Choi Beom-gyu, Service Research Team Leader at the Earth Information Business Division of SIA Co., Ltd., who engaged in an in-depth discussion.

Starting with this forum, Gyeonggi Province plans to further detail the "climate satellite launch" project, one of the key tasks in the second half of the 8th provincial administration, and strengthen communication with the provincial council.

The Gyeonggi climate satellite will be equipped with functions to comprehensively monitor and analyze the climate crisis, including greenhouse gas monitoring, urban and forest changes due to climate change, and disaster prediction and response.