N. Korea moves mobile assembly building to middle of launch pad

Activities involving the movement of equipment from the Sohae Satellite Launching Station in Dongchang-ri, Cholsan County, North Pyongan Province, continue to be monitored in North Korea. Following the North's unsuccessful launch of the Chollima-1 rocket last Wednesday, they have once again pledged to make a second attempt to launch a spy satellite. Therefore, the observation is that they are trying to launch a reconnaissance satellite from a different launch site.

According to the Voice of America, an active mobile assembly building has been confirmed, citing satellite imagery taken by Planet Labs on Saturday. A satellite picture taken last Monday showed that the mobile assembly building was in operation while in contact with the gantry tower (launch pad) at the Seohae Satellite Launching Site. However, it has now been relocated to the middle of the launch pad. This assembly building has the capability to move between the main processing building and the launch pad, which are approximately 140 meters apart from this position. The VOA reported that this noticeable change, involving the movement of a key facility at the Sohae Satellite Launching Station, comes amidst North Korea's vow for a second attempt to launch a satellite. This activity itself could be an important indicator for the launch, even though the mobile assembly building has moved farther away from the launching pad. "The mobile assembly building can move back and forth on a track laid on the floor," said Jang Yeong-geun, head of the Missile Center at the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy. "Although the reason for its movement is unknown, it could be a sign of an impending launch."

Before last month's launch, North Korea moved the mobile assembly building not only from the existing launch site but also from the new launch site to the launch pad. The satellite was launched from the new launch site, which is 3 kilometers away. As a result, some analysts speculate that placing the mobile assembly building at the existing launch site could have been a cover.

In the midst of this, as the activity is only detected from the existing launch site, the observation is that North Korea may have chosen the existing site for its second launch attempt. "There is no guarantee that this activity is not another cover, and the military is closely monitoring the situation," a South Korean government source stated. "With North Korea announcing its second attempt, we are considering the possibility of another provocation."


Jin-Woo Shin niceshin@donga.com