North korea | North korea rocket

North korea | North korea rocket — North Korea's much-anticipated rocket launch ended quickly in failure early Friday, splintering into pieces over the Yellow Sea soon after takeoff, according to South Korean and U.S. officials.

There was silence on the launch from officials in Pyongyang, which proceeded despite protests from the U.S., South Korea and other countries that called the launch a cover for a test of missile technology. North Korea said the rocket was part of a peaceful effort to send a satellite into space to the commemorate the anniversary of its founder's birth.
"It's terribly embarrassing for the North."

North Korea is reportedly making preparations for such a test soon.
North Korean officials said they would make an announcement about the launch "soon." Tokyo, which was prepared to shoot down any rocket debris that jeopardized its territory, also confirmed a launch from North Korea.

North Korean space officials said the Unha-3, or Galaxy-3, rocket was meant to send a satellite into orbit to study crops and weather patterns – its third bid to launch a satellite since 1998. Weeden said the launch appeared to be a failure of both space and missile objectives.

The United States, Britain, Japan and others have called such a launch a violation of U.N. resolutions prohibiting North Korea from nuclear and ballistic missile activity.

The U.N. Security Council has scheduled a meeting Friday on the North Korea launch.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak convened an emergency security meeting, and officials agreed to closely monitor North Korea's next moves, according to Lee's office.

North Korea fired a long-range rocket early Friday, South Korean and U.S. officials said, defying international warnings against moving forward with a launch widely seen as a provocation.

North Korean officials said they would make an announcement about the launch “soon.”
Space officials say the rocket is meant to send a satellite into orbit to study crops and weather patterns – its third bid to launch a satellite since 1998.
The United States, Britain, Japan and others, however, have called such a launch a violation of U.N. resolutions prohibiting North Korea from nuclear and ballistic missile activity.

North Korean space officials have dismissed assertions that the launch is a cover for developing missile technology as “nonsense.”

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