North Korea may try to launch a military spy satellite in the coming days after its earlier failure

By MARI YAMAGUCHI and HYUNG-JIN KIM
Associated Press

TOKYO (AP) — Japan says North Korea has told it of a plan to launch a satellite in the coming days in what may be its second attempt to put a military spy satellite into orbit. Japan’s coast guard issued safety warnings for vessels in maritime zones that might be affected. It says North Korean authorities notified it about a plan to launch a satellite from Aug. 24 and the end of Aug. 30. The North’s reported launch plan comes a day after the U.S. and South Korean militaries kicked off annual military exercises that North Korea has called a rehearsal for invasion. South Korea retrieved wreckage from the earlier North Korean launch and concluded the satellite wasn’t sophisticated enough to conduct military reconnaissance from space.