South Korea Launches Satellite

North Korean insane midget throws tantrum. South Korea had a satellite launched by Russia that contains the most sophisticated geographical survey equipment yet in use by that country. The high-resolution equipment can be used for surveillance of, oh say, a dangerous neighbor to the immediate North.

South Korea sent a satellite into orbit on Friday primarily for making geographical surveys but also possibly for tracking military movements in North Korea, which raised regional security concerns by launching missiles on July 5.

"We sound an alarm-bell to South Korea straining the situation on the Korean peninsula," the North's KCNA news agency quoted a spokesman for the Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland as saying.

"The prevailing situation compels the North to step up its moves to bolster the invincible war deterrent for self-defense in every way under the banner of Songun," the spokesman said referring to Pyongyang's military-first policy.

South Korea's 900-kg (2,000 lb) Arirang-2 satellite, launched in Russia, can take high-resolution pictures of the earth's surface, a government agency said. Experts said it would be the country's most advanced surveillance satellite.

The Arirang-2 gives South Korea the ability to identify objects on the ground one meter in diameter, South Korea's Overseas Information Service said.

However, its capabilities pale in comparison to the array of spy satellites and surveillance planes the United States uses to keep an eye on North Korea.

Given the North's increasingly unhinged activities, it is a good thing the South Koreans are taking things quite seriously.