North’s space launch vehicle may have failed
The space launch vehicle (SLV) fired by North Korea early Wednesday morning may have failed mid-flight, a South Korean military official said soon after the launch.
According to the official, who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity, the suspected SLV disappeared from the South’s radar systems before it reached a point in its trajectory projected by analysts.
The South’s military analysts are examining the issue with an eye on the possibility that the SLV exploded mid-air or crashed into the sea, the official said.
The South Korean military is also analyzing other aspects of the SLV’s flight, including whether it was fired from the North’s Sohae Satellite Launching Ground in Tongchang-ri, North Pyongan Province.
Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Wednesday morning that the South Korean military is “examining whether [the North Korean SLV] followed a normal flight path.”
Wednesday’s SLV marks the first time in seven years that the North has attempted to launch a satellite payload into orbit.
The last was the Kwangmyongsong-4 in February 2016, which the North claimed was an Earth observation satellite.
The North announced in December that it had conducted an “important final-stage test” for a military reconnaissance satellite, which it said it would launch into orbit by April.
The North is barred from conducting any launches that employ ballistic missile technology, including that of satellites, under multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions.
BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]