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Reports: Kwangmyongsong-4 tumbling in orbit
It might have happened again. According to a CBS News report that quotes unnamed “U.S. officials,” North Korea’s Kwangmyongsong-4 satellite is tumbling as it orbits the planet. CNN quotes “a senior U.S. defense official” as saying the same thing. There’s no word on how the U.S. came to this conclusion, but it was likely spotted…
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Rocket launch edition of Rodong Sinmun
Seldom do North Korean’s see such a colorful 3-page spread in the daily Rodong Sinmun newspaper as they woke up to on Monday. The front page carries a picture of Kim Jong Un signing the launch order for the satellite on February 6 — something that wouldn’t be reported by North Korean media until after…
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About those South Korean lawmaker’s comments on satellite weight
There’s some pretty startling and definitive comments being carried in the South Korean media, apparently uttered by Lee Cheol-woo of the ruling Saenuri Party after an intelligence briefing on Sunday. Yonhap quotes lawmakers as saying the National Intelligence Service told them the satellite is presumed to weigh 200 kilograms, double the estimate for the satellite launched in 2012. It…
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THAAD deployment ‘at the earliest possible date’
Discussions between the U.S. and South Korea on deployment of a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile system will begin as soon as this week towards deploying it “at the earliest possible date,” assuming an agreement is reached, the Department of Defense said on Monday. “We’d like to see this move as quickly as possible,…
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Here’s what we know about Kwangmyongsong-4 so far
North Korea’s Kwangmyongsong-4 satellite is up in space and orbiting the globe. The country’s media said the launch took place a 0030 UTC on Sunday — something that matched with detection of the launch at around 0031 UTC. The rocket appeared to keep largely to its intended path so the likelihood of success was good and U.S. Strategic…
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North Korea claims satellite success, US confirms object in orbit
North Korea says it successfully launched a satellite on Sunday morning and a U.S. military space monitoring system confirms it did put something into space. The launch of the Kwangmyongsong-4 satellite took place at 0030 UTC, according to state media, which said it entered its orbit 9 minutes and 46 seconds after lift-off. The satellite is the fifth that the…
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North Korea launches rocket
North Korea launched a rocket from the Sohae Satellite Launch Center at 0031 UTC on Sunday. First indications are that the launch was successful, with the first and second stages of the rocket and the satellite fairing falling into the broad areas of the sea they were expected. Following the launch from the Sohae Satellite Launch Center,…
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All systems go? DPRK brings forward launch window
North Korea has brought forward and shortened the launch window for its Kwangmyongsong satellite — a strong sign of confidence that the rocket is ready to launch and good weather is expected. Originally the country had told international shipping, aviation and telecommunications organizations that the satellite would be launched sometime between Feb. 8th and 25th,…
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U.S. ‘positioned and ready’ in case of North Korean launch
The U.S. military is watching and stands ready to respond to any North Korean missile launch, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said in Nevada on Thursday. Speaking during a visit to Nellis Air Force Base, Carter said “With respect to our own surveillance, we will, as we always do, watch carefully. If there’s a launch, track the…
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Activity seen at east, west launch sites
A mobile launcher for a ballistic missile has been detected on the move in the eastern part of North Korea, Japan’s NHK television said Thursday. The report didn’t specify the precise area, but the region is home to the Tonghae launch site. Tonghae was North Korea’s first missile launch center and is often used to…
