SEOUL, Jan. 4 (Xinhua)-- The Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) confirmed Friday that it has lost communication with the country's first multipurpose satellite Arirang 1.

    According to the KARI, its surface uplink with the Arirang 1 satellite was lost on Dec. 30.

    KARI said experts failed to restore the communication with the orbiting satellite and find the cause of the problem.

    Arirang 1 was launched on Dec. 21, 1999. It takes high-resolution photos of the earth's surface and circles the earth 14 times a day at an orbit 685 km from the surface of the earth.

    It has orbited the globe 42,985 times and taken 440,000 photos since it was launched, the KARI said.

    Initial reviews pointed toward a possible machinery malfunction or a misalignment that may have affected power generation, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency quoted an official of the KARI as saying.

    If communication with the satellite is not restored within a week, KARI will consult with outside experts to discuss measures to formally declare the satellite lost, Yonhap said.

    Arirang 1 is expected to orbit the earth for some years before being dragged into the atmosphere, where it will burn up and be destroyed.