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The global launch market reached $14.1 billion in 2024 — up 34% since 2021.
| Attribute | Nuri (KSLV-II) 🇰🇷 South Korea Trust: Operator-primaryⓘ Last verified Active · Last updated 2026-06-01Remove × | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | KARI / Hanwha Aerospace | ULA | Rocket Lab |
| Country | 🇰🇷 South Korea | 🇺🇸 USA | 🇺🇸 USA |
| Status | Active | Retired | In Development |
| Vehicle class | Medium | Medium | Medium |
| Propellant | RP-1 / LOX (KRE-075 engines all stages) | RP-1 / LOX (RD-180); LH₂ / LOX (Centaur III) | CH₄ / LOX |
| Reusable | No | No | Yes |
| Stages | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| First flight | 2021 | 2002 – 2024 | 2026 |
| Payload to LEO | 2,600 kgas of [1]600 km SSO target orbit | 18,850 kgas of [1]401 configuration. Maximum 401/551 stretch to 20,520 kg. 551 max 29,420 kg (5-solid boosters). ↑ Best | 13,000 kgas of [1]Expendable; ~8,000 kg reusable with first-stage return |
| Payload to GTO | — | 8,900 kgas of [1]551 configuration (maximum performance) ↑ Best | — |
| Height | 47.2 mas of [1] | 58.3 mas of [1]401 configuration ↑ Best | ~40 mas of [1] |
| Liftoff mass | 200 tas of [1] | 334 tas of [1]401 configuration without strap-ons | ~481 tas of [1] ↑ Best |
| Success rate | 75%as of [2]3/4 full successes: TF1 (Oct 2021) partial, TF2 (Jun 2022) success, TF3 (May 2023) success, TF4 (Nov 27, 2025 — first Hanwha-led production launch) success | 100%as of [2]99/99 mission successes from Aug 2002 through Apr 2024 (final Kuiper flight). Only launch vehicle with 100% success across 99 missions. ↑ Best | — |
| Total flights | 4as of [2] | 99as of [2]Retired after KA-01 (Amazon Kuiper satellite testbed, Apr 9, 2024) ↑ Best | — |
| Cost / kg LEO | — | — | — |
| Summary | South Korea's first domestically developed and produced launch vehicle, designed entirely without foreign engine technology. Nuri TF4 (Nov 2025) was the first launch managed by Hanwha Aerospace rather than KARI — marking the transition to commercial operation. KASA (Korea Aerospace Administration) took over programme oversight in 2024. | ULA's workhorse from 2002–2024. Launched Mars Science Laboratory (Curiosity), OSIRIS-REx, Solar Orbiter, Lucy, New Horizons, and the Boeing Starliner. Its Russian RD-180 first-stage engine became a political liability after 2022; last flight was the Amazon Kuiper testbed on Apr 9, 2024. | Rocket Lab's medium-lift reusable rocket targeting the $100B constellation replenishment market. Uses a 'hungry hippo' fairings design that opens at the top rather than traditional clamshell separation. First flight delayed to Q4 2026 after a Jan 2026 propellant tank test anomaly. |
28 launch vehicles across 10 countries — active, retired, and in development — with primary-source citations from manufacturer user guides and agency press kits. Pure URL state: bookmark or share the link and the comparison reproduces exactly.