Walkerlin Space has been selected for the Deep Tech Challenge Project (DCP), a government-funded project of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. The project, titled "Development of a 6U or larger CubeSat equipped with space observation and orbit conversion technology," will receive a total budget of 6.8 billion won. This includes 3.6 billion won in government subsidies, 2 billion won in venture capital investment, and the company's own matching funds. With future government equity investments, the project could potentially raise up to 10 billion won.
Walkerinspace is a specialized on-orbit servicing (OOS & ISAM) company founded in January 2024 by Professor Kim Hae-dong of the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Gyeongsang National University, a former member of the Korea Aerospace Research Institute. Through this project, Walkerinspace will develop Korea's first technology to approach a specific space object in space and observe its appearance and posture, as well as the free orbital transformation technology that will enable this.
Observation and orbital transformation technologies are core foundational technologies for on-orbit servicing, including space refueling, satellite repair, and component replacement. They can also be expanded into space-based space situational awareness (SSA) and space traffic management (STM). WalkerinSpace's strategy is to apply the technologies acquired through the DCP project to its on-orbit servicing robotic satellites currently under development, thereby creating a high-value-added space business model.
The project, jointly conducted by Ecos Solutions and Pusan National University, will utilize CubeSat space demonstrations through self-funding and government support by the end of 2027. Demonstration objectives include accessing and observing space objects, as well as self-orbit decommissioning, and the technologies involved will be applied to the development of future robotic satellites.
Through this project, Walkerlin Space plans to secure high-level space technology and strengthen its technological competitiveness in the orbital servicing market.
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