The Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI, President: Lee Sang-Ryool) announced that the first Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) maneuver was conducted successfully on December 17 at around 02:45. The first LOI is the most important maneuver because it slows down the speed of Danuri to be safely captured by the Moon’s gravity and enter the target orbit.
After the first LOI maneuver, a two-day-long trajectory analysis followed, and it was confirmed on December 19 that Danuri slowed down the speed (8,000 km/h → 7,500 km/h) and entered into the elliptical orbit, stably captured by the Moon’s gravity.
Four more LOI maneuvers (second ~ fifth) are planned, and the final success of target orbit entrance will be confirmed after one-day-long data analysis after the final LOI maneuver (fifth, 12.28).
※ The remaining LOI schedule: the first LOI (12.17) → the second LOI (12.21) → the third LOI (12.23) → the fourth LOI (12.26) → the fifth LOI and data analysis (12.28) → lunar orbit entrance success confirmation (12.29)
For further information, please contact the Public Relations Division (Phone: +82-44-202-4034, E-mail: msitpress@korea.kr) of the Ministry of Science and ICT.