Taepodong-1
Type	IRBM
Service history
In service	25-30 ?
Used by	North Korea
Production history
Manufacturer	North Korea
Specifications
Weight	33,4 tons
Length	25,8 m
Diameter	1,8 m
Warhead	One HE / WMD ? / Satellite ?
Blast yield	1,000 kg HE
Engine	liquid-fueled
Operational range	2,500 km
Guidance system	inertial

Taepodong-1
Chosŏn'gŭl	대포동-1
Hancha	大浦洞-1
McCune–Reischauer	Taep'odong-1
Revised Romanization	Daepodong-1

Taepodong-1 is a two-stage intermediate-range ballistic missile developed in North Korea and currently in service there. The missile was derived originally from the Scud rocket, and can allegedly serve as both a nuclear delivery system and a space launch vehicle.

Contents 1 History 2 Description 3 Operators 4 Notes 5 See also 6 External links

[edit] History

On August 31, 1998, it was announced by the North Koreans that they had used this rocket to launch their first satellite Kwangmyŏngsŏng from a pad on the Musudan-ri peninsula. However, the satellite failed to achieve orbit; outside observers conjecture that the additional third stage either failed to fire or malfunctioned^[1] (see Kwangmyŏngsŏng). This is contrary to official statements of the North Korean state media, which stated that the satellite achieved orbit about 5 minutes after launch. ^[2] On this single launch, the main two-stage booster flew for 1,646 km without any significant problems.^[3] Thus, the Taepodong-1 is North Korea's longest-range operational ballistic missile after the Musudan-1.

In 2003 the US Defense Intelligence Agency reported to the Congress that, "We have no information to suggest Pyongyang intends to deploy the Taepo Dong 1 (TD-1) as a surface-to-surface missile in North Korea. We believe instead that the vehicle was a test bed for multi-stage missile technologies."^[4] On the other hand, some Russian sources claim that as of 2009, North Korea has deployed 25-30 Taepodong-1 missiles.^[5]

According to post-launch analysis of the launch vehicle, debris from the third stage fell as far as 4,000 kilometers from the launch pad. Some analysts believe that a three-stage space booster variant of the Taepodong-1 could be capable of travelling as far as 5,900 kilometers with a very small payload.^[6]

[edit] Description

• Liftoff thrust: 525.25 kN
• Total mass: 33 406 kg
• Diameter: 1.80 m
• Length: 25.80 m
• Range with 1,500 kg of payload: 2,000 km
• Range with 1,000 kg of payload: 2,500 km
• Range with 50 kg of payload and third stage: 6,000 km^[7]

The rocket's first stage is a Rodong-1 MRBM, and the second stage is a Hwasong-6 short-range ballistic missile.

[edit] Operators

• North Korea: The Artillery Guidance Bureau of the Korean People's Army is the only operator of the Taepodong-1.

[edit] Notes

[edit] See also

• List of Korea-related topics
• Military of North Korea
• Rodong-1 Range: 1,300 km
• Rodong-2 Range: 2,000 km
• Taepodong-2 Range: 10,000 km
• Hyunmoo South Korea
• Asia's Space Race

[edit] External links

• Encyclopedia Astronautica
• Federation of American Scientists

v • d • e Missiles of the DPRK Short-range KN-2  · Hwasong-5  · Hwasong-6 Medium-range Rodong-1 · Rodong-2  · Taepodong-1  · Musudan ICBM Taepodong-2 (in development) Space launch vehicles Paektusan  · Unha