The North Korean satellite launched into space last week is out of control and most likely dead, astronomers reported Monday.
The apparent failure will not cause the spacecraft, said to be about the size of a washing machine, to fall quickly back to Earth, but represents a major setback in Pyongyang’s bid to portray the launching as a patriotic and technological success.
“It’s tumbling, and we haven’t picked up any transmissions,” said Jonathan McDowell, a Harvard astronomer who tracks global rocket launchings and space activity. “Those two things are most consistent with the satellite being entirely inactive at this point.”
North Korea’s state-run media said nothing about the satellite’s dysfunction, focusing instead on the somber one-year anniversary of the death of Kim Jong Il, the longtime leader. As part of the coverage, state television broadcast video footage of his daughter-in-law that appeared to confirm that a new member of Pyongyang’s notoriously reclusive Kim dynasty is on its way.
