By William J. Broad and Choe Sang-Hun
Published: December 17, 2012
On Wednesday, December 12, 2012, North Korea launched a small
satellite into orbit atop a large range rocket. This was considered a huge
triumph for Kim Jong-il’s son and successor, Kim Jong-un. But since the rocket
was launched, there have been signs that the satellite is not working as it
should be and it is possibly tumbling in orbit and could even be dead. Dr.
McDowell said “It’s clear that the rocket part of this mission worked very well
for the North Koreans, they ended up in the right orbit. But the preponderance
of the evidence suggests that the satellite failed either during the ascent of
shortly afterwards.”Astronomers have observed that the satellite gets bright
then dims as it presumably rotates through space. Astronomers have also not been
able to pick up a signal from the satellite which is another huge indication
that something went wrong. The North Korean government didn’t have any response
about the satellites dysfunction, but instead focused on how the launch was in
honor of the first anniversary of the death of Kim Jong-il, their longtime
leader. Mr. Molcazan, a sky watcher in Toronto who is tracking the satellite
said “It’s going to be up there for at least a few years. The real question is
whether the satellite is functioning. Right now, it looks like it’s rotating
aimlessly.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/18/world/asia/north-korean-satellite.html?ref=world
Published: December 17, 2012
On Wednesday, December 12, 2012, North Korea launched a small
satellite into orbit atop a large range rocket. This was considered a huge
triumph for Kim Jong-il’s son and successor, Kim Jong-un. But since the rocket
was launched, there have been signs that the satellite is not working as it
should be and it is possibly tumbling in orbit and could even be dead. Dr.
McDowell said “It’s clear that the rocket part of this mission worked very well
for the North Koreans, they ended up in the right orbit. But the preponderance
of the evidence suggests that the satellite failed either during the ascent of
shortly afterwards.”Astronomers have observed that the satellite gets bright
then dims as it presumably rotates through space. Astronomers have also not been
able to pick up a signal from the satellite which is another huge indication
that something went wrong. The North Korean government didn’t have any response
about the satellites dysfunction, but instead focused on how the launch was in
honor of the first anniversary of the death of Kim Jong-il, their longtime
leader. Mr. Molcazan, a sky watcher in Toronto who is tracking the satellite
said “It’s going to be up there for at least a few years. The real question is
whether the satellite is functioning. Right now, it looks like it’s rotating
aimlessly.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/18/world/asia/north-korean-satellite.html?ref=world
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