ⓒYONHAP News

It was a successful liftoff for the country’s first weather satellite made with all homegrown technology.

About 40 minutes after the launch from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana, the satellite made initial contact with a ground station in Dongara, Australia. 

The Chollian-2A is a multipurpose geostationary weather satellite aimed at enhancing the weather monitoring system.

Developed by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute(KARI), the Chollian-2A will run test operations for six months before providing weather information services for the next ten years beginning in July from an altitude of 36-thousand kilometers from the earth.

The groundbreaking launch comes seven and a half years after KARI began developing the satellite.

Unlike its predecessor Chollian-1, which offered black and white images, the latest version is mounted with a state-of-the-art meteorological imaging system that can provide higher resolution images in color.

It is expected to improve the forecasting of typhoons, which had been criticized for lacking in accuracy.

The Korea Meteorological Administration also predicts the new satellite will be able to gather images of fine dust particles more accurately and detect localized downpours at least two hours in advance.