North Korea aims for the moon
Aiming at an eventual moon mission, North Korea is working on a five-year plan to launch more satellites. / Yonhap
By Hong Dam-young
North Korea wants to plant its flag on the moon sometime in the next 10 years, despite international sanctions.
The intention was revealed in an Associated Press news agency interview with Hyon Kwang-iI, a senior official at North Korea's National Aerospace Development Administration, Thursday.
“We will not be daunted by the U.S. and its allies trying to block our space development program,” Hyon said. “We will conquer space and plant the flag on the moon.”
North Korea is working on launching more Earth observation satellites, according to its five-year plan, under orders from leader Kim Jong-un. It hopes to place more advanced satellites by 2020, including its first geostationary satellite. The plan also includes manned spaceflights and scientific experiments in space.
According to Hyon, the plan’s long-term goal is to solve communications problems and collect more data for forestry and crop management.
Experts around the world have divided opinions on North Korea’s moon mission.
Yang Mu-jin, from the University of North Korean Studies in Korea, said it could be seen as a part of what North Korea usually does to spread propaganda. He said judging by North Korea’s staggering economic situation, affording such a huge cost for lunar exploration would be hard.
Jonathan McDowell, an astrophysicist from the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre, had a rather positive view, saying: “It is not ridiculous to make a plan for lunar exploration at an early stage of your space development. The plan probably will take more than five years, but it is not a far-fetched idea.”
Hyon said it is hypocritical to call North Korea’s space plan a military program in disguise, considering the history of space exploration.