North Korea says military reconnaissance satellite launch ends in failure

North Korea said today that its latest attempt to launch a new rocket carrying a military reconnaissance satellite ended in failure due to the midair explosion of the rocket during the first-stage flight this week. 

Vice general director of North Korea’s National Aerospace Technology Administration (NATA) said that the rocket carrying the satellite, the Malligyong-1-1, exploded after it lifted off from the Sohae Satellite Launching Ground on the country’s northwest coast on May 27, a news agency reported.

The launch came just hours after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chinese Premier Li Qiang held a trilateral summit in Seoul and reaffirmed their commitment to promote peace on the Korean Peninsula.

“The launch failed due to the air blast of the new-type satellite carrier rocket during the first-stage flight,” the news agency reported, citing the NATA official.

A preliminary examination by experts from the North’s launch preparatory committee concluded that the “accident” was attributable to the operational reliability of a new “liquid oxygen plus petroleum” engine, the official said.

The other causes of the failure will also be examined, according to the news agency.

(This story was taken from a syndicated feed, and edited only for style by Gujarat Samachar Digital staff)

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