Yoon Young-bin, head of Korea AeroSpace Administration, speaks during an interview with Hankook Ilbo, June 19, 2024. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-suk

Korea's national space agency said Wednesday it has discussed cooperation with its European counterpart as part of efforts to upgrade its space exploration capabilities.

The Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA) met with officials from the European Space Agency (ESA) and discussed various measures to expand bilateral cooperation in the space sector, according to KASA.

KASA said it has been in talks with the ESA on joining hands for the exploration of Lagrange points, which are positions in space where the gravitational forces of a two-body system like the sun and Earth create areas of stability, allowing spacecraft to conduct exploration missions with minimal fuel consumption.

Korea plans to explore L4, one of the stable Lagrange points, while the ESA has been working to develop a spaceship for L5 exploration.

The two agencies have also discussed cooperation in developing satellite navigation systems and deep space network infrastructure, as well as Earth observation and environmental monitoring.

"Cooperation with the ESA will become an important milestone in our efforts to strengthen cooperation with Europe in the space sector and position Korea at the center of international space research and development," said Yoon Young-bin, head of KASA. (Yonhap)