Korea is planning to carry out a robotic lunar exploration program in the near future. It will be comprised of launching both lunar orbiters and a lunar lander. The Korean lunar exploration program is expected to be performed in two-stage development: 1) Launching the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO hereafter) by 2018 using a foreign launch vehicle. 2) Sending a lunar orbiter and a lunar lander using Korean Space Launch Vehicle (KSLV-II) based on key technologies developed in the first stage of lunar exploration program.

KPLO will be the first Korean lunar mission to open a route to the Moon. The main objectives of KPLO mission are to develop and demonstrate the lunar exploration technologies and to study the fundamental features of the origin, formation and evolution of the Moon and its relationship to the Earth and other planets, asteroids in solar system as a whole. In order to reach the scientific goals, KPLO will be equipped with a handful of scientific payloads including a high resolution optical camera system. The remaining scientific instruments will be selected at the end of 2015 through AO (Announcement of Opportunity) process. The details of KPLO mission and the general Korean lunar exploration program will be presented