North Korean spy satellite launch fails

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North Korea's satellite launch failed. Associated Press/Photo by Ahn Young-joon

South Korea’s military on Wednesday said it had recovered parts of the satellite launch vehicle after it crashed into the sea. North Korean state media said the rocket’s second stage malfunctioned during the launch. Wednesday’s attempt was the regime’s sixth attempted satellite launch since 1998 and its first since 2016. Only two of its satellites have made it into orbit. Pyongyang said it would conduct another launch attempt soon.

How did other countries respond to the launch? Officials in the South Korean capital city of Seoul sent out emergency alerts and temporary evacuation warnings on Wednesday morning. Japan also issued emergency alerts, but both countries canceled the alarms after the rocket crashed.

Dig Deeper: Listen to Carolina Lumetta’s report on The World and Everything in It podcast about two women fleeing North Korea and finding their faith.

Lauren Canterberry

Lauren Canterberry is a reporter for WORLD. She graduated from the World Journalism Institute and the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism, both in 2017. She worked as a local reporter in Texas and now lives in Georgia with her husband.