Detailed Analysis to Identify Cause of Mission Abortion
Combustion chamber rupture due to combustion gas leak confirmed
Insufficient seal component compression was the cause
Component improvement and process enhancement underway
Follow-up launch planned for Q3 2026
Innospace, a private space launch company, announced on the 17th that it has concluded a joint investigation with the Brazilian Air Force’s CENIPA regarding the cause of the mission abortion during the first commercial launch of HANBIT-Nano.
The investigation targeted the ‘Spaceward’ mission conducted on December 22, last year, at Brazil’s Alcantara Space Center. A comprehensive review of the obtained flight instrument data, tracking data, ground facility data, launch operation records, and video materials was conducted. More than 300 pieces of rocket debris recovered during two sessions in Brazil were analyzed to reconstruct the overall flight process.
The analysis revealed that the rocket flew normally in the initial flight stage after liftoff and sent and received flight data properly. However, at 33 seconds, a combustion gas leak occurred at the front of the 1st stage hybrid rocket’s combustion chamber assembly, causing the combustion chamber to rupture, and the rocket to separate into several parts.
The leak was attributed to the deformation of seal components during replacement and reassembly of the combustion chamber front cap in the Brazilian launch preparation process aimed at enhancing launch reliability. This led to a lack of compression force and unevenness needed to maintain internal combustion chamber seals, resulting in diminished sealing performance.
Based on the analysis results, Innospace plans to strengthen assembly process improvements and quality management procedures, undertake some design changes and upgrades to related components, and additionally perform function verification procedures.
Innospace CEO Kim Soo-jong stated, “Through this cause analysis process, we were able to comprehensively review the flight data and collected materials and clearly understand major flight processes, acquiring valuable technical assets for future rocket technology advancement. Innospace and CENIPA reached consistent conclusions about the analysis results from the joint investigation with no disagreement on future measures. Based on this, we will apply necessary technical improvements and undertake sufficient verification procedures to further enhance the safety and success rate of follow-up launches.”
When the joint investigation was initiated, CENIPA emphasized in a formal notice to Innospace and KASA that the investigation was a technical investigation to improve Brazil’s space operational safety and not intended to assign legal responsibility. It also clearly stated that intellectual property related to the rocket would be strictly protected during the investigation. Furthermore, from the start of the investigation, it reaffirmed that the investigation would proceed according to technical and independent principles with the purpose of preventing recurrence of similar cases in the future.
Colonel Alexander Coelho Simão, the lead investigator of Brazil’s Air Force CENIPA, stated, “There was tight collaboration and high transparency between Innospace, CENIPA, and KASA during this investigation process. Through information sharing and joint analysis of evidence, a technically consistent conclusion was reached.” He added that such collaborative investigation procedures played a crucial role in enhancing the reliability and completeness of the investigation results.
The specific schedule for subsequent launches will be finalized after the completion of technical improvements and KASA’s launch approval, with plans to utilize an already secured launch slot in Brazil in the third quarter of this year.
CENIPA, an agency under the Brazilian Air Force, is responsible for scientifically analyzing the causes of aviation and rocket-related incidents according to international standards. It initiated space accident investigation procedures carried out by the Brazilian state following last year’s launch, officially classifying the HANBIT-Nano launch as an ‘incident,’ not an ‘accident.’
Innospace performed the first commercial launch of HANBIT-Nano at Brazil’s Alcantara Space Center on December 22, 2025, at 22:13 (local time). At that time, after 33 seconds of flight, an anomaly was detected, leading to an early termination of the Spaceward mission according to safety procedures. It was confirmed that there were no casualties or additional facility damage during this process.