SEOUL/TOKYO: North Korea attempted to launch a new military reconnaissance satellite on Monday, but the rocket exploded mid-air during the first stage. This latest failure comes after Pyongyang had warned just hours earlier that it would try launching a spy satellite by June 4th.
North Korea’s “Chollima-1″(千里馬-1) rocket, carrying its ”spy satellite”, exploded during launch. Video taken by NHK in Dandong, China’s border city to North Korea with 2M population. The rocket has supposedly liquid fuel. Full HD:https://t.co/xzTvbHW7w3 pic.twitter.com/DmzKcotPww
— CNSA Watcher (@CNSAWatcher) May 27, 2024
Officials from South Korea and Japan had reported that the launch seemed unsuccessful. North Korea fired the projectile southward off its west coast around 10:44 pm local time. The South Korean military detected a large amount of debris from the rocket in the sea just two minutes after liftoff.
Japanese officials said the object launched by North Korea disappeared over the Yellow Sea. They presumed nothing had entered space.
Japan issued and then lifted an emergency warning for southern residents.
According to North Korean state media, a new liquid fuel rocket engine caused the explosion during the first stage flight. However, other possible causes are still under investigation.
This was intended to be North Korea’s second successful spy satellite launch after placing its first one in orbit last November. That launch came after leader Kim Jong Un visited Russia’s space center, where President Vladimir Putin promised to aid Pyongyang’s satellite program.
Prior attempts in May and August 2022 had failed, with the rockets crashing into the sea due to engine and fuel issues. After analyzing wreckage from the May incident, South Korea said the satellite had no meaningful reconnaissance capabilities.
Despite the November success, experts say the satellite’s capabilities remain unknown, though North Korea claimed it transmitted photos of the Pentagon and White House.
Pyongyang has stated it needs military reconnaissance satellites to monitor U.S. and South Korean forces. But the launches violate U.N. Security Council resolutions against North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs.
The United States also denounced the launch as a “brazen violation” of U.N. Security Council resolutions. “This launch involved technologies that are directly related to (North Korea’s) intercontinental ballistic missile program,” the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement.
The launch came hours after China, South Korea, and Japan wrapped up a rare three-way summit in Seoul.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida had urged North Korea not to launch.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang did not mention the launch, but called on all parties to lower tensions on the peninsula.
(REUTERS)
