Pyongyang’s aerospace administration says failure ‘is not a big issue’ and promises third attempt in October
North Korea’s second attempt to place a spy satellite in orbit has failed after the rocket booster experienced a problem during its third stage, state media reported, as space authorities vowed to try again in October.
The first attempt in May also ended in failure when the new Chollima-1 rocket crashed into the sea.
Thursday’s pre-dawn launch came in the first hours of an eight-day window that North Korea had given for the attempt.
The nuclear-armed country has been seeking to place what would be its first military spy satellite into orbit, saying it eventually plans a fleet of satellites to monitor moves by US and South Korean troops.
“The flights of the first and second stages of the rocket were normal, but the launch failed due to an error in the emergency blasting system during the third-stage flight,” state news agency KCNA said of Thursday’s launch.
South Korea’s military said it tracked the flight from its launch at the North’s Sohae Satellite Launching Ground and also concluded that it was a failure.
