[3rd Report] North Korean Reconnaissance Satellite Unable to Identify Buildings or Vehicles... JCS States "No Military Usefulness"

JCS Ends Projectile Recovery Operation... Maritime Image Quality Seems to Decline

Our military has reached the final conclusion that North Korea's first military reconnaissance satellite launched from Dongchang-ri last May has no military utility whatsoever. This comes 36 days after recovering debris from the North Korean space launch vehicle.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 5th, the Joint Chiefs of Staff announced, "The search and recovery operation for debris from the North Korean space launch vehicle has been terminated as of today."

North Korea launched the Cheollima-1 type space launch vehicle carrying the Malligyong-1 satellite from Dongchang-ri, North Pyongan Province, on May 31. However, the launch vehicle failed to ignite the second stage after the first stage separation and crashed into the sea about 200 km west of Eocheongdo, Gunsan, Jeonbuk Province. The military discovered floating debris presumed to be from the Cheollima-1 about an hour and 30 minutes after the launch in the fall area, and on the 15th, recovered the second stage of the three-stage Cheollima-1 rocket. Subsequently, the Malligyong-1 satellite was also retrieved. Through detailed analysis of this debris, South Korea and the U.S. have assessed North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) technology as well as the level of satellite manufacturing technology.

According to the joint analysis, North Korea's Malligyong-1 satellite has a resolution exceeding 1 meter, meaning that one pixel corresponds to an area of 1 meter by 1 meter. For comparison, the European Space Agency (ESA)'s Sentinel satellite has a resolution of 10 cm, the U.S. private satellite operator Planet Labs' SkySat has a spatial resolution of about 70 cm, and the French Airbus commercial satellite Neo has a spatial resolution of 30 cm. Only satellites with resolutions below 1 meter can identify buildings, vehicles, and trees. Therefore, the resolution of North Korea's reconnaissance satellite is practically unsuitable for military use.

When some experts evaluated the photos of downtown Seoul and Incheon Port, which North Korea released last December claiming they were taken by a reconnaissance satellite test model, as "poor quality," Kim Yo-jong, Deputy Director of the Workers' Party, issued a statement directly rebutting, saying, "Who would install an expensive high-resolution camera for a one-time test?"

North Korea's 'Kwangmyongsong-4' satellite, launched in 2016, has been regarded as a "dead satellite" since no communication with ground stations has been detected. If North Korea were receiving information sent by reconnaissance satellites, radio signals from these satellites should also be detected by neighboring countries such as China, Mongolia, and Russia. However, no such signals have ever been detected. It is understood that only the 'Kwangmyongsong 3-2' satellite, launched in 2012, remains, but the situation is the same.

In response, North Korea has announced plans for a re-launch. Following the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopting a resolution condemning North Korea's missile launches for the first time in history, North Korea has indicated it may no longer notify the IMO in advance when launching satellites. Inside and outside the military, there is speculation that North Korea may prepare a military parade and reconnaissance satellite re-launch ahead of June 27, which North Korea claims as Victory Day and the anniversary of the Korean War armistice agreement. In particular, it is anticipated that this parade will be held on a larger scale using new methods to cover up the failure of the military reconnaissance satellite launch on May 31.

Our military has also recently detected maintenance activities such as asphalt repaving at the West Sea Satellite Launch Site in Dongchang-ri, Cholsan County, North Pyongan Province, and is closely monitoring the possibility of North Korea re-launching a reconnaissance satellite before Victory Day.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.