After several failures, including one this spring, North Korea successfully launched a satellite into space Wednesday, an achievement met with cheers in Pyongyang and trepidation almost everywhere else.
North Korea says it wanted a satellite to help track the weather and send back data. But the United States, South Korea and their allies see the Unha-3 rocket that launched it as a potential weapon, theoretically capable of delivering high-impact munitions as far as California.
Even traditional backers Russia and China expressed worry about the launch.
Moscow had urged Pyongyang to cancel the space bid and Beijing conspicuously withheld its approval.
Here are some key points about the launch:
GETTING INTO ORBIT
The Unha-3 is a three-stage “carrier rocket” with a range that experts estimate is about 10,000 kilometers (6,300 miles).
That was enough to get the Kwangmyongsong satellite into orbit — a historic victory for North Korean scientists who had four failures since 1998, including April’s first-stage flameout 90 seconds after launch.
Getting a satellite into orbit is an extremely tricky undertaking, requiring all of a rocket’s complex systems to operate at peak efficiency.
Over the weekend North Korea had extended its window for liftoff by a week, until Dec. 29, citing an unidentified technical problem with the first stage of the rocket.
Winter is also a complicating factor. Weather hazards such as lightning, strong winds and freezing temperatures could have stalled a liftoff because they can interfere with the rocket’s trajectory and its sensitive electronic components. But North Korea overcame all those potential pitfalls.
ROCKET OR MISSILE?
North Korea calls it a satellite launch, but others see it as a covert test of missile technology.
The same launching mechanism used to send a satellite into space could be employed to send a long-range missile tipped with a nuclear warhead to targets as far away as Los Angeles.
North Korea has tested two nuclear devices since 2006, and is likely trying to find a way to mount an atomic warhead on a long-range missile.
That requires miniaturization technology that experts say it has yet to master.
The United States, South Korea and Japan deployed naval destroyers equipped with missile defense systems around the Korean Peninsula. Japan and South Korea also prepared, but did not use, Patriot missiles to intercept any debris that may have fallen on their territories.
CONSEQUENCES
The United States, South Korea and Japan are expected to seek tougher U.N. Security Council sanctions against North Korea for its launch.
The Security Council will hold closed-door consultations on the launch Wednesday, according to the U.N. Mission for Morocco, which holds the rotating council presidency.
Existing sanctions ban North Korea from buying or selling materials used for nuclear and missile development.
They also include a freeze on the assets of individuals and organizations involved in such development.
Japan has banned North Koreans from entering the country and stopped trade between the sides as part of its own sanctions against.
Six-nation negotiations on dismantling North Korea’s nuclear program in exchange for aid fell apart in early 2009.
A February deal for the United States to provide food aid in exchange for a freeze in nuclear and missile activities collapsed after the North’s April launch.
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