. 24/7 Space News .
NUKEWARS
N. Korea hails 'successful' test of new rocket engine
By Park Chan-Kyong
Seoul (AFP) Sept 20, 2016


US urges North Korea to begin 'serious negotiation'
New York (AFP) Sept 18, 2016 - US Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday urged North Korea to freeze its nuclear program as a first step toward starting serious negotiations with the United States and the world about its future.

Speaking at a meeting with the Japanese and South Korean foreign ministers, Kerry said the United States remains "deeply committed" to mutual defense and to "rolling back the provocative, reckless behavior" of North Korea.

The United States is ready to hold talks with Pyongyang to discuss peace on the Korean peninsula, ending North Korea's isolation and economic development if it agrees to denuclearization, he said.

"The immediate need is for them to freeze where they are, to agree to freeze and not to engage in any more provocative actions, not engage in more testing, particularly in order to bring countries together and to begin a serious negotiation about the future," said Kerry.

North Korea this month carried out its fifth and biggest nuclear test, which followed a series of missile launches in violation of UN resolutions barring Pyongyang from developing nuclear and missile technology.

China, Pyongyang's ally, has been pushing for re-starting the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program that would also involve the United States, Japan, Russia and South Korea.

North Korea has successfully tested a new, high-powered rocket engine, state media said Tuesday, a move Seoul said was designed to showcase its progress towards being able to target the US east coast.

The ground test comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang detonated what it said was a miniaturised atomic bomb.

Taken together, the two tests raise the prospect that the isolated state could be inching towards its ultimate goal of developing a nuclear-tipped missile that could hit Washington DC.

State-run news agency KCNA trumpeted the engine test, which it said would give the country "sufficient carrier capability for launching various kinds of satellites".

Rocket engines are easily re-purposed for use in missiles, and outside observers say that Pyongyang's space programme is a fig leaf for weapons tests.

The North's leader Kim Jong-Un hailed the test and called for more rocket launches to turn the country into a "possessor of geostationary satellites in a couple of years to come", KCNA said.

A geostationary satellite must be propelled to an altitude of 36,000 kilometres (22,500 miles), a Unification Ministry official was quoted as saying by South Korea's official Yonhap news agency.

"The distance to the eastern part of the United States is some 12,000 kilometres. The North is thus showing off its ability" to hit the US east coast, the official added.

Rocket scientist Chae Yeon-Seok at the South's Korea Aerospace Research Institute said such an engine would represent "a technical leap forward" in developing launch vehicles.

It suggests the North is "coming close to having an inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) that could hit the US mainland".

Pyongyang regularly parades homegrown missiles and boasts of its plan to develop long-range missiles capable of targeting America.

It has already carried out a series of long-range missile tests presented as satellite launches, most recently in February, and has fired missiles from a submarine.

A proven submarine-launched ballistic missile system would allow deployment far beyond the Korean peninsula and a "second-strike" capability in the event of an attack on the North's military bases.

- 'Great satisfaction' -

After supervising the test at the country's Sohae satellite-launching site, leader Kim Jong-Un called on officials, scientists and technicians "to round off the preparations for launching the satellite as soon as possible", KCNA reported.

Kim "expressed great satisfaction" with the results of the test, according to KCNA, and said the North had made cutting-edge scientific advances despite difficult economic conditions.

North Korea has been hit by five sets of United Nations sanctions since it first tested a nuclear device in 2006, but has insisted it will continue.

Professor Yang Moo-Jin of the University of North Korean Studies said the North had set a five-year space development programme that ends this year.

"This new test heralds an upcoming landmark ICBM test. The next test, disguised as a satellite launch, is likely to come when the UN Security Council adopts new sanctions over its last nuclear test or around the time when the US presidential election takes place in November", Yang said.

The US has a range of missile-defence technologies at its disposal, including the Aegis Combat System, Patriot missiles and sophisticated radars.

Washington is also working with Seoul to install a missile defence system known as THAAD in South Korea, though Beijing says the hardware poses a significant threat to regional security.

Yonhap news agency said two B-52 heavy bombers were to be sent from Guam to the South as a fresh show of force against the North this week.


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com
Learn about missile defense at SpaceWar.com
All about missiles at SpaceWar.com
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

Previous Report
NUKEWARS
N. Korea says US pushing peninsula to 'explosion'
Seoul (AFP) Sept 14, 2016
North Korea on Wednesday accused the United States of pushing the Korean Peninsula to "the point of explosion" after it dispatched two huge bombers in a show of force against Pyongyang. The supersonic B-1B Lancers flew over South Korea Tuesday as Washington vowed its "unshakeable commitment" to defend its allies in the region following North Korea's fifth and largest-ever nuclear test conduc ... read more


NUKEWARS
Space tourists eye $150mln Soyuz lunar flyby

Roscosmos to spend $7.5Mln studying issues of manned lunar missions

Lockheed Martin, NASA Ink Deal for SkyFire Infrared Lunar Discovery Satellite

As dry as the moon

NUKEWARS
Opportunity departs Marathon Valley to head deeper into Endeavour Crater

Mars Rover Views Spectacular Layered Rock Formations

Storm Reduces Available Solar Energy on Opportunity

NASA Approves 2018 Launch of Mars InSight Mission

NUKEWARS
Astronaut returns home after logging record-breaking 534 days in space

'Star Trek' 50-year mission: to show the best of humanity

Vietnam's 'Silicon Valley' sparks startup boom

Taiwan tourism industry hit by drop in Chinese visitors

NUKEWARS
China launches second space lab: Xinhua

China plans global satellite network to boost internet

Good Start for Tiangong 2

China to launch second space laboratory: Xinhua

NUKEWARS
US astronauts complete spacewalk for ISS maintenance

Space Station's orbit adjusted Wednesday

Astronauts Relaxing Before Pair of Spaceships Leave

'New port of call' installed at space station

NUKEWARS
A quartet of Galileo satellites is prepared for launch on Ariane 5

What Happened to Sea Launch

SpaceX scours data to try to pin down cause rocket explosion on launch pad

India To Launch 5 Satellites In September

NUKEWARS
New light on the complex nature of 'hot Jupiter' atmospheres

Discovery one-ups Tatooine, finds twin stars hosting three giant exoplanets

Could Proxima Centauri b Really Be Habitable

Rocky planet found orbiting habitable zone of nearest star

NUKEWARS
Towards the workplace of the future - with virtual reality

Deriving inspiration from the dragon tree

Foam stops sloshing liquid

Developing composites that self-heal at very low temperatures









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.