After a year-long leadership vacancy, the Korea Aerospace Research Institute and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute have appointed new presidents.
On the 17th, the Korea Aerospace Agency announced that Lee Sang-cheol, a professor at Korea Aerospace University, has been appointed president of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, while Park Jang-hyun, head researcher at the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, will serve as president of the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute. Both appointments will take effect on the 20th, with their terms lasting three years.
Lee Sang-cheol, the new president of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, is a figure with extensive experience in both the industry and academia. He graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in aerospace engineering in 1986 and received a master's degree in aerospace engineering from the same university's graduate school. After earning a doctoral degree in aerospace engineering from Texas A&M University in the United States, he worked at Samsung Aerospace Research Institute and KAI. He has been serving as a professor at Korea Aerospace University since 2006.
Park Jang-hyun, the new president of the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, is an expert in space object monitoring systems. He graduated from Yonsei University with a degree in astronomy in 1986 and received his master's and doctoral degrees in astronomy from the same university's graduate school. He joined the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute in 1992 and has been working there since. His main research area is orbital calculations, and he has also served as the head of the Space Hazard Monitoring Center.
The Korea Aerospace Research Institute and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute saw the terms of their previous presidents end in early last year. Lee Sang-ryul, former president of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, completed his term on March 22, while Park Young-deuk, former president of the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, finished on April 8. However, the appointment of their successors was postponed due to the restructuring of the board of directors following the creation of the Korea Aerospace Agency. Concerns arose that this delay in appointing new presidents for these key research institutes could impede the progress of Korea's New Space policies.