Seoul National University Rocket Club ‘Hanaro’ Achieves Success in Domestic Competitions in 2024
- Demonstrates expertise in rocket design and manufacturing by winning the Grand Prize at the 2024 NURA Academic Conference and the Silver Prize at the Launch Competition
- Wins the Excellence Award in the X-Corps National Competition through research collaboration with Korean Air


▲ Hanaro team members attending the NURA Launch Competition held at the Goheung Aerospace Center in Jeollanam-do on August 10

Seoul National University College of Engineering announced that Hanaro, a rocket club affiliated with the Department of Aerospace Engineering, achieved outstanding success in several domestic competitions this year.

Hanaro won the Grand Prize (Minister of Aerospace Administration Award) at the NURA (National Universities' Rocket Association) Academic Conference held from July 20 to 21 at the Korea Aerospace Research Institute in Daejeon. They also received the Silver Prize (Chairman of Korea Foundation for the Advancement of Science and Creativity Award) at the Launch Competition held from August 10 to 11 at the Goheung Aerospace Center in Jeollanam-do, demonstrating their excellence in rocket design and manufacturing.

Established in 1992, the NURA competition involves approximately 308 students from 25 universities nationwide as of 2024. Teams present the rockets they have developed and showcase their performance through launches. Hanaro impressed with the development of a 400m-class dual-recovery system rocket, solidifying the reliability of its technical expertise.


▲ Hanaro team member Wonho Jung (second from the left) and Vice President Surin Kim  (third from the left) participating in the X-Corps Plus Festival held at Chung-Ang University’s Centennial Hall on November 26

Hanaro also achieved remarkable success by winning the Grand Prize at the "X-Corps Practical Problem Research Group Final Presentation Competition" held at SNU on November 14 and the Excellence Award (Chairman of National Research Foundation of Korea Award) at the "2024 X-Corps Plus Festival (2024 Korea Future Talent Festival)" held at Chung-Ang University on November 26, hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT.

X-Corps is a nationwide field-linked project aimed at nurturing future leaders. In 2024, 170 teams across nine universities participated, with 36 teams advancing to the X-Corps National Competition after an initial selection process. Hanaro collaborated with Korean Air on a project titled "Development of a 1km-class Launch Vehicle for Flight Equipment Experiments" as part of the X-Corps research program, which began in May. The successful execution of this research led to consecutive awards, proving the industrial application potential of their launch vehicle development.

Additionally, Hanaro actively participates in various research activities, such as the We-Meet (Work-Experience Meet) project and the Undergraduate Research Program (URP). Club president Jonghwan Yoon stated, "Based on our recent achievements, Hanaro plans to compete in the International Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC), the world's largest student rocket competition, to be held in New Mexico, USA, in 2025. We aim to take on challenges on the global stage beyond Korea."