--- title: "North Korea Attempts to Launch Satellite But It Crashes Into Ocean" description: "North Korea was trying its very best to send a spy satellite up into space — but that thing just didn't want to stay in the sky. " date: "2023-05-31" modified: "2023-05-31" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/north-korea-satellite-crashes" categories: - "Off-World" - "Space" tags: - "north korea" - "satellites" - "spy satellites" - "the digest" --- # North Korea Attempts to Launch Satellite But It Crashes Into Ocean ![North Korea was trying its very best to send a spy satellite up into space — but that thing just didn't want to stay in the sky. ]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## I Spy North Korea was trying its very best to send a spy satellite up into space — but it just didn't want to stay in the sky. As [North Korea's *Korean Central News Agency* admitted](), the Malligyong-1 satellite, which was launched on a homebrewed Chollima-1 rocket, experienced a second-stage malfunction that saw it tumbling down into the sea. The Pyongyang-run media attributed the satellite's failure to "unstable" fuel and the newness of the Chollima-1 rocket, and has vowed to fix its "serious defects" and relaunch as soon as possible. As [*The Guardian* notes](), this is North Korea's sixth attempt to launch a satellite, and — curiously — its first time doing so since 2016. This fact wasn't lost on the White House, which condemned the failed launch [via a National Security Council spokesperson](), calling it a "brazen violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions." In the past, such satellite launches were believed to be Pyongyang's attempt to circumvent international rules and covertly test [long-range missile systems](). Indeed, both Japan and South Korea [activated energy sirens after the launch](), though they were quickly called off once it was clear that any threat it may have posed had passed. ## Saving Grace South Korea later revealed that it had salvaged part of what is believed to be the wreckage, which could be a huge boon for the country. "Technical experts will be able to gain tremendous insight into North Korea's proficiency with large, multi-stage boosters from the recovered debris," Ankit Panda, a United States-based security analyst [told the *Agence France-Presse*](). As with all statecraft, this debacle has many layers, and although it's scary to imagine North Korea trying to get around the rules preventing it from testing long-range missiles, it's at least reassuring that its latest attempt crashed and burned. **More on military spycraft:** [*Another Mysterious Balloon Sighted, This One Over Hawaii*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()