NK Launch a Technical Failure

North Korea's missile test may have successfully launched President Obama and most of the world into a horrified diplomatic frenzy, but experts are now saying that the launch itself was a technical failure. According to the New York Times, North Korea's government is "bragging that the supposed satellite payload was now broadcasting patriotic tunes from space," astronomers and weapons experts say they did not break into orbit, which is necessary not only for radio satellites but also for __. As an MIT missile expert noted, "It's got to be embarrassing. I can imagine heads flying if the 'Dear Leader' finds out the satellite didn't fly into orbit," which is necessary for long-range missiles. Strangely, nations purported to be buyers of North Korean technology—such as Iran—seem to have more success than North Korea does. (Iran launched a satellite into orbit in February.) Specialists note, however, than failures are to be expected at the beginning of a missile program; the threat isn't over, yet.