KASA (Korea AeroSpace Administration)

KASA (Korea AeroSpace Administration; Korean: 우주항공청) is South Korea's national space agency, formally established in May 2024 and headquartered in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province. KASA was created to consolidate South Korea's space program management — previously distributed across KARI, KACST, and multiple ministries — into a single unified space authority. The agency oversees South Korea's space exploration missions including the Danuri lunar orbiter (launched August 2022, the first Korean spacecraft to reach the Moon), the Korea Space Launch Vehicle 2 (Nuri), future Moon landers, and Mars mission planning. KASA coordinates Korea's international space cooperation agreements with NASA, ESA, and other space agencies, and represents Korea in the international space community as the country aims to become a major space-faring nation by 2045.