There has been recent speculation that North Korea’s threatened “Christmas gift” might be a satellite launch from the Sohae Satellite…

The easy answer is that no one in the West knows.

Officials worry … ===== SPACE LAUNCH REPORT 2018 LAUNCH VEHICLE/SITE STATISTICS ===== by Ed Kyle as of December 29, 2018 ===== YEAR TO DATE LAUNCH VEHICLE SUMMARY Calendar year launch vehicle results, ranked by number of successes, with launch total as the first tiebreaker and vehicle payload mass as the second tiebreaker. North Korea described it as “crucial” and experts believe that it may have involved an engine for a space launch vehicle or long-range missile.

North Korea also recently warned that it is up to the U.S. to choose what “Christmas gift” it will get.

Updated December 27, 2017.

SpaceX and its CEO Elon Musk are aiming at manned flights to Mars in the next two decades which will require powerful launch vehicles that can send payloads of up to 100 metric tons to Mars. An Analysis of North Korea’s Unha-2 Launch Vehicle David Wright 1 March 20, 2009 Summary North Korea has announced that it will attempt to launch a satellite into orbit in early April 2009 using its Unha-2 launcher. North Korea’s announcement that it will attempt to launch a satellite into orbit in early April begs the obvious questions of what launcher it will use and what capability that launcher could give if used as a ballistic missile. North Korea has said it successfully performed another “crucial test” at its long-range rocket launch site that it claims will further strengthen its nuclear deterrent. Lee said North Korea might be building a space launch vehicle based on the liquid-fuel engines it uses for its Hwasong-15 ICBM, which was flight-tested in November 2017 and demonstrated a potential ability to reach deep inside the continental United States. Lee said North Korea might be building a space launch vehicle based on the liquid-fuel engines it uses for its Hwasong-15 ICBM, which was flight-tested in November 2017 and demonstrated a …

China's CZ-3B opened the 2017 orbital launch year with a flight from XiChang LC 2 on January 5.

Space Launch Report: Home On the Pad Space Logs Library Links; 2017 Space Launch Report. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK, North Korea) launched a space launch vehicle (SLV) on 7 February 2016 at around 09:00 local time in DPRK, with the aim of placing a satellite into the Earth’s orbit.

Launch window: 1700-2100 GMT (1:00-5:00 p.m. EDT) Launch site: Cosmic Girl (Boeing 747), Mojave Air and Space Port, California Both successful orbital launches from North Korea have been on the Unha-3 SLV, whose militarized adaptation is likely the same vehicle outfitted with a reentry vehicle in place of an orbital satellite. North Korea has told the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization that it plans to launch a new space rocket this month, its first in more than three years. North Korea test-launched another type of ICBM, Hwasong-14, twice earlier in 2017.

Few details are known about the launch vehicle since it has not been successfully flight tested.

Kim, the analyst, said North Korea is likely to wait until early next year to perform a satellite launch and follow it with tests of a submarine-launched ballistic missile and of other new missiles. 2017 Launch Vehicle Standings 2017 Launch Site/Country Standings Launch Vehicle by Success Rate 2017 Orbital Launch Log 2017 Suborbital Launch Log Space Launch Forecast. All space launch vehicles and ICBMs that North Korea has publicly tested used liquid propellants. Low Earth Orbit (LEO) missions have orbital periods less than 2 hours. Like many other spacefaring nations around the globe, North Korea’s space capabilities are closely tied to its ballistic missile development. 42.