Rand three months after a first failed attempt by North Korea to send a spy satellite into space, a second launch attempt also failed. The flights of the first and second stages of the rocket were “normal”, reported the North Korean state news agency KCNA on Thursday (local time). The launch then failed “due to a fault in the emergency ignition system during flight of the third stage”. North Korea’s National Aerospace Development Agency (NADA) is planning a new attempt in October, according to KCNA.
South Korea’s chief of staff previously said Pyongyang “launched what the North claims is a launch vehicle.” He did not initially give any further details. A day earlier, Pyongyang had informed the Japanese Coast Guard that it was planning to launch another military satellite between August 24 and 31.
The launch, which has now failed, came days after a tripartite summit by the US, Japan and South Korea and two days after the start of joint US-South Korea maneuvers. North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile program has long been viewed as a major threat.
Similar technology for ICBMs and space missiles
North Korea failed on May 31 with the first attempt to send a spy satellite into space. The “Cheollima-1” satellite launcher crashed into the sea shortly after launch. South Korean forces were able to recover parts of the wreckage and, in a joint analysis with the USA, came to the conclusion that the reconnaissance satellite was of “no military use whatsoever”. Pyongyang announced Planned to make another launch soon, Tokyo then mobilized ships and its missile defense system in case parts of the missile landed on its territory.
However, experts believe that there is a significant technological overlap between the development of ICBMs and the ability to launch into space like a satellite.
On Monday, the United States and South Korea launched their annual joint Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise. The maneuver is scheduled to last until August 31. Pyongyang strongly condemned the regular maneuvers by the two allies as preparations for an alleged invasion.
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