Democratic People's Republic of Korea Prepares Rocket/Missile Launch
 

North Korea technicians watch live images of the rocket Unha-3 at the satellite control room of the space center on the outskirts of Pyongyang on April 11, 2012. North Korea said that the fuelling of a long-range rocket is under way, ahead of the launch scheduled for later this week despite international protests.'We are injecting fuel as we speak. It has started' Paek Chang-Ho, director of the satellite control centre told visiting foreign journalists. North Korea is counting down to the 100th anniversary of its founder's birth Kim Il-Sung on April 15 with top-level meetings and a controversial rocket launch scheduled in coming days to bolster his grandson's credentials. Getty

A North Korean man looks down from a balcony at North Korea's space agency's General Launch Command Center on the outskirts of Pyongyang Wednesday, April 11, 2012. Engineers are pumping fuel into a rocket that is set to carry a satellite into space, officials at the North Korean space agency's central command center said Wednesday, showing reporters a live feed of the west coast launch pad. (David Guttenfelder)

North Korea technicians work at the satellite control room of the space center on the outskirts of Pyongyang on April 11, 2012. North Korea said that the fuelling of a long-range rocket is under way, ahead of the launch scheduled for later this week despite international protests.'We are injecting fuel as we speak. It has started' Paek Chang-Ho, director of the satellite control centre told visiting foreign journalists. North Korea is counting down to the 100th anniversary of its founder's birth Kim Il-Sung on April 15 with top-level meetings and a controversial rocket launch scheduled in coming days to bolster his grandson's credentials. Getty

[Note the center earth monitor appears to show a space craft trajectory passing over western North America, capable of surveilling the US's satellite launch facility at Vandenberg AFB, NORAD and Spacecom.]

A North Korean scientist looks at a monitor displaying a map at the satellite control centre of the Korean Committee of Space Technology on the outskirts of Pyongyang April 11, 2012. North Korea said on Wednesday it was injecting fuel into a long-range rocket ahead of a launch condemned by its neighbours and the West. The launch is set to take place between Thursday and next Monday and has prompted neighbours such as the Philippines to re-route their air traffic. Reuters

This April 6, 2012 satellite image provided by DigitalGlobe shows the Tongch'ang-ni Launch Facility on North Korea's northwest coast. North Korean space officials say the rocket built to carry a satellite into space is ready for liftoff from the facility this week, as the nation's leadership makes a series of appointments before a major political gathering. (DigitalGlobe)

A nuclear test site near Punggye-ri in North Korea is pictured in this DigitalGlobe handout satellite photo taken April 1, 2012, and obtained by Reuters April 10, 2012. Isolated and impoverished North Korea said on April 10, 2012 it was ready to go ahead with its proposed long-range rocket launch, an announcement that sparked immediate condemnation from South Korea and Russia and a plea from China, its main ally, for calm. Reuters

A North Korean cameraman films a map with the site of launch pad of the rocket Unah-3 at the Tongchang-ri space center on April 8, 2012. North Korea's long-range rocket is on its launch platform, AFP reporters said Sunday, as the regime again insisted it was to send a peaceful satellite and not a missile. The usually secretive North organised an unprecedented visit for foreign reporters to Tongchang-ri space centre in an effort to show its Unha-3 rocket is not a disguised ballistic missile, as claimed by the US and its allies. Getty

North Korean officials and foreign journalists leave the launch pad after a visit to see the rocket Unha-3 in Tangachai -ri space center on April 8, 2012. North Korea has confirmed their intentions to launch the rocket next week despite international condemnations. Getty

The North Korean Unha-3 rocket is pictured at Tangachai -ri space center on April 8, 2012. North Korea has confirmed their intention to launch the rocket next week despite international condemnations. Getty

North Korean soldiers stand guard in front of the Unha-3 rocket at Tangachai -ri space center on April 8, 2012. North Korea has confirmed their intention to launch the rocket next week despite international condemnations. Getty

Engineers are seen checking the Unha-3 (Milky Way 3) rocket sitting on a launch pad at the West Sea Satellite Launch Site, during a guided media tour by North Korean authorities in the northwest of Pyongyang April 8, 2012. North Korea has readied a rocket for a launch from a forested valley in its remote northwest this week that will showcase the reclusive state's ability to fire a missile with the capacity to hit the continental United States. Picture taken April 8, 2012. Getty

The North Korean rocket Unha-3 rocket is pictured at the Tongchang-ri space center on April 8, 2012. North Korea's long-range rocket is on its launch platform, AFP reporters said Sunday, as the regime again insisted it was to send a peaceful satellite and not a missile. The usually secretive North organised an unprecedented visit for foreign reporters to Tongchang-ri space centre in an effort to show its Unha-3 rocket is not a disguised ballistic missile, as claimed by the US and its allies. Getty

Scientists are seen monitoring the Unha-3 (Milky Way 3) rocket in a control room at the West Sea Satellite Launch Site during a guided media tour by North Korean authorities in the northwest of Pyongyang April 8, 2012. North Korea has readied a rocket for a launch from a forested valley in its remote northwest this week that will showcase the reclusive state's ability to fire a missile with the capacity to hit the continental United States. The Korean characters on the banner read "Let us occupy the high target of building a powerful nation by relying on the strength of science and technology!" Picture taken April 8, 2012. Reuters

Scientists are seen monitoring the Unha-3 (Milky Way 3) rocket in a control room at the West Sea Satellite Launch Site during a guided media tour by North Korean authorities in the northwest of Pyongyang April 8, 2012. North Korea has readied a rocket for a launch from a forested valley in its remote northwest this week that will showcase the reclusive state's ability to fire a missile with the capacity to hit the continental United States. Picture taken April 8, 2012. Reuters

Mobile Patriot missile launchers, center, are set up at a Japan Air Self-Defense Force base on Miyakojima island in Okinawa Prefecture, southwestern Japan, Monday, April 9, 2012 in preparation for North Korea's rocket launch slated between April 12 and 16. North Korean space officials moved all three stages of a long-range rocket into position for a controversial launch, vowing to push ahead with their plan in defiance of international warnings against violating a ban on missile activity.

U.S. Navy's guided-missile cruiser USS Shiloh (CG 67) sails in the East China Sea, about 90 kilometers (56 miles) northeast of Miyakojima island in Okinawa Prefecture, southwestern Japan, Monday, April 9, 2012. North Korean space officials moved all three stages of a long-range rocket into position for a controversial launch slated between April 12 and 16 towards south over the East China Sea and the Pacific. (Kyodo News)