Fears grow that North Korea's 'dishwasher wrapped in tinfoil' satellite could plunge back to Earth as US official says 'it's tumbling out of control'

The satellite that North Korea launched into space yesterday appears to be 'tumbling out of control' as it orbits the earth, said U.S. officials

Concerns are growing that the errant orbiting vehicle could collide with other satellites or crash land on Earth



Fears were growing tonight that the satellite launched into space by North Korea could plunge back to Earth following reports from US officials that it was ‘tumbling out of control.’



The design has been described as a ‘dishwasher wrapped in tinfoil’ by critics of the secretive rogue regime that finally managed to fire the rocket into orbit on Wednesday at the fifth attempt.

As world powers – including China and Russia – united to condemn the launch, experts were still trying to determine exactly what the North Koreans have sent into space.

After 14 years of trying, hundreds of millions of pounds and repeated failures, the Pyongyang government claimed the mission was a huge success.

Unstable Cargo: The Unha-3 rocket lifts off from a launch site on the west coast, in the village of Tongchang-ri, carrying a satellite which is now worryingly falling out of orbit This image shows the Unha-3 rocket launch at North Korea's space agency's General Launch Command Center on the outskirts of Pyongyang, Wednesday, December 12, 2012

But while the North Koreans celebrated, question marks were also being raised over whether the satellite was safely circling the planet.

Space experts in the US were said to be seriously concerned its unstable trajectory could result in a crash landing on Earth, possibly putting people’s lives in danger.

There was also the possibility of a collision with other orbiting hardware.

A moving map - tracking the route of the satellite - has been released on website n2yo.com

In 2009 a one-ton Russian satellite with a nuclear reactor collided with a 1,200-pound American orbiter over Siberia. The resultant debris was as large as a school bus and reentered the atmosphere, crashing into the Atlantic Ocean.

The unnamed US officials told NBC News the North Korean craft was ‘some kind of space vehicle’ but they haven’t been able to work out exactly what the satellite is supposed to do.

North Korea insists the idea was to put a weather satellite into a pole-to-pole orbit and, while it usually takes a fortnight to be sure all is well, the three-stage launch went to plan, said officials.

The last rocket the country launched in April fell apart shortly after being fired.

South Korea’s Defence Ministry reportedly confirmed the object was in orbit but added ‘it was not yet known whether it was functioning properly.’



Last night, the ministry said the satellite appeared to be orbiting normally at a speed of 7.6 kilometers (4.7 miles) per second.

Anger:South Korean protestors burn a mockup of a North Korean missile during an anti-North Korea rally against the launch of the long-range missile

'Provocative': Foreign Secretary William Hague and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (right) have condemned North Korea's actions

Experts said the three-stage rocket is similar in design to a model capable of carrying a nuclear-tipped warhead as far as the West Coast of the United States.

They warned that North Korea’s next step may be conducting its third nuclear test.

Britain and the US denounced the launch as a ‘provocative’ act.

On Wednesday, the United Nations Security Council also condemned the North Koreans, saying that Pyongyang violated a 2009 council resolution banning ‘any launch using ballistic missile technology.’ South Korea and Japan, the closest neighbours, both reacted by calling emergency security meetings.

After the launch in the early hours of Wednesday morning from the Sohae Satellite Launch Centre on the country’s west coast, the first stage of the rocket fell into the Yellow Sea and the second stage dropped into the Philippine Sea.

Pyongyang is thought to have a handful of rudimentary nuclear bombs. However, experts believe the North lacks the ability to make a warhead small enough to mount on a missile that could threaten the US.



The UN's 15-member Security Council held a closed meeting on Thursday to discuss the ramifications of the latest move by the secretive Communist nation and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he 'deplores' the launch.



After a failed attempt to launch a rocket in April, the Security Council had promised to take 'action' if there was any new attempt at a launch in the future.



Out of Pyongyang, the official KCNA news agency said that the rocket was fired from the Sohae Satellite Launch Centre on the country's west coast and that the Kwangmyongsong weather satellite achieved orbit as planned.



Rally: South Korean protesters participate in an anti-North Korea rally

Demonstrations: Protestors hold up signs with new leader Kim Jong Un's face crossed out

Blast off: A screen shows the Unha-3 (Milky Way 3) rocket being launched from a launch pad at the North Korea's West Sea Satellite Launch Site

The rocket was launched at North Korea's satellite control centre in Cholsan county, North Pyongan province

Russia said the 'New launch carried out by North Korea flaunts the opinion of the international community, including calls from the Russian side.'

Japan and South Korea voiced concern as well. 'The Japanese government regards this launch as an act compromising the peace and stability of the region, including Japan,' said Osamu Fujimura, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak convened an emergency meeting of his national security council.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague MP was among the international figures who described the move – which defied a world ban on ballistic missile tests – as 'provocative'.

It is feared the rogue state could be working towards a missile on which a nuclear warhead could be mounted.

Mr Hague summoned the North Korean ambassador to the Foreign Office to demand an explanation following a 'clear violation' of at least two United Nations Security Council resolutions.

'This provocative act will increase tensions in the region. I deplore the fact that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea has chosen to prioritise this launch over improving the livelihood of its people,' he said.

Even China, North Korea's closest ally, expressed regret that a rocket was launched 'in spite of the extensive concerns of the international community'.

It was a rare show of Chinese solidarity with the White House, which labelled the rocket test 'a highly provocative act that threatens regional security'.

Japan angrily demanded an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, which has punished North Korea repeatedly for developing its nuclear programme.

But the angry reaction did little to dampen spirits in the capital Pyongyang, where people danced in the streets after vans mounted with loudspeakers drove around streets announcing the news.

Its Unha rocket, named after the Korean word for 'galaxy', blasted off from the Sohae launch pad in Tongchang-ri, north-west of Pyongyang, shortly before 1am UK time yesterday. Pride in the scientific advancement appeared to outweigh the fear of greater international punishment and isolation.

Activity: A satellite image captured last month shows the Sohae Satellite Launch Station in Cholsan County, North Korea

A man watches a TV screen broadcasting news on North Korea's long-range rocket launch on December Wednesday

After three failed attempts, North Korea, though struggling to feed its people, is now one of the few countries to have successfully launched a satellite into space from its own soil. Bitter rival South Korea is not on the list, although it has tried. North Korean space officials insist the rocket is meant to send a satellite into orbit that can study crops and weather patterns. The launch of a rocket similar in design to one capable of carrying an atomic-tipped warhead as far as California raises the stakes in the international standoff over North Korea's expanding atomic arsenal. KOREA-NORTH ROCKET/ - Map of East Asia locating trajectory of a North Korean rocket launched on Wednesday. (SIN01) Pyongyang is thought to have a handful of rudimentary nuclear bombs. However, experts believe the North lacks the ability to make a warhead small enough to mount on a missile that could threaten the United States. One part of the rocket landed west of the Korean Peninsula and another part was expected to have landed east of the Philippines, according to reports. American space expert Jonathan McDowell, of the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics, said the three-stage Unha-3 rocket delivered the satellite into orbit and constituted 'a perfect success for North Korea.' He said that based on his own calculations an object identified by US space command was from the North Korean satellite.

When North Korea announced its plans to attempt to launch a long-range rocket earlier this month Washington said such a move would be a 'highly provocative act'. A similar launch in April, which broke apart shortly after lift-off, was widely condemned, and this latest move is expected to provoke a similar reaction from the international community. 'It was a surprise in terms of the timing,' said Bruce Bennett, senior defense analyst with the RAND think tank. 'They had talked about postponing for a week. To recover so quickly from technical problems suggests they have gotten good at putting together a missile.'

National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor called it 'another example of North Korea's pattern of irresponsible behaviour'.



In a statement, Mr Vietor said the US 'remains vigilant in the face of North Korean provocations', and will work with other nations and the UN Security Council 'to pursue appropriate action' against North Korea.

Fears were growing tonight that the satellite launched into space by North Korea could plunge back to Earth following reports from US officials that it was 'tumbling out of control'

VIDEO: North Korea launches long-range rocket

Tough talk: South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, centre, presides over an emergency meeting of the National Security Council after North Korea's actions

The rocket launch was carried out on the orders of North Korea's Kim Jong Un, who took power after his father Kim Jong Il died on December 17 last year.

Ed Royce, incoming Republican chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the launch showed that the new North Korean leader had no intention of giving up his nuclear weapons program.



Royce also criticized U.S. policy toward Pyongyang, calling it a 'long-term failure.'

'The Obama administration's approach continues to be unimaginative and moribund. We can either take a different approach, or watch as the North Korean threat to the region and the U.S. grows,' Royce said in a statement.

Pubic announcement: An anchorwoman announcing the country's successful rocket launch in a TV program in Pyongyang, North Korea

Jubilant: Members of a North Korean military band perform in celebration - the rocket launch was carried out on the orders of North Korea's Kim Jong Un, who took power after his father Kim Jong Il died

Rejoice: North Koreans dance to celebrate their country's rocket launch

Celebrating: North Koreans toast after hearing the news of a rocket launch with beer

Rocket tests are seen as crucial to advancing North Korea's nuclear weapons ambitions.

Pyongyang is thought to have a handful of rudimentary nuclear bombs, but is not yet believed to be capable of building warheads small enough to mount on a missile that could threaten the United States.

North Korea has spent decades trying to perfect a multi-stage, long-range rocket. Experts say ballistic missiles and rockets in satellite launches share similar bodies, engines and other technology.



This is the fifth attempt at a long-range launch since 1998, when Pyongyang sent a rocket hurtling over Japan. Previous launches of three-stage rockets were not considered successful.



Leader: It is the second rocket launch from North Korea since Kim Jong Un took power after the death of his father, Kim Jong Il

Washington sees North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles as a threat to world security and to its Asian allies, Japan and South Korea.



North Korea under its new leader has pledged to bolster its nuclear arsenal unless Washington scraps what Pyongyang calls a hostile policy.



The UN Security Council has imposed two rounds of sanctions on North Korea following its nuclear tests, and a 2009 resolution orders the North not to conduct any launch using ballistic missile technology.



The council condemned the failed North Korean launch in April and ordered seizure of assets of three North Korean state companies linked to financing, exporting and procuring weapons and missile technology.



Under Security Council resolutions, nations are also barred from buying or selling weapons with North Korea, a key source of revenue for its authoritarian government.



North Korea said it chose a safe flight path so debris would not endanger neighboring countries.



But there are still concerns over falling debris, and Japan's defence minister issued an order to missile units to prepare to intercept the rocket if it or its fragments threatened to hit the country.



Government spokesman Osamu Fujimura said that no debris hit Japanese territory.



He said the rocket was fired at 9.49am (00:49GMT) and that debris landed in seas off the Korean Peninsula and the Philippines.

The government was still confirming if there was any damage on Japanese territory from the launch, he said.



'We had strongly urged North Korea to refrain from the launch, but they went ahead nonetheless.



'This is completely unacceptable,' he said.