Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground facts for kids
| Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground | |
Circle shows the North Korean Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground (previously Musudan-ri) in a regional context
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Quick facts for kids Korean name |
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| Chosŏn'gŭl |
무수단리
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| Hancha |
舞水端里
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| Revised Romanization | Musudan-ri |
| McCune–Reischauer | Musudan-ri |
| Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground | |
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| 무수단리 | |
| North Korea | |
 Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground
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| Coordinates | 40°51′30″N 129°41′11″E / 40.85833°N 129.68639°E |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1980s |
| Built by | North Korea |
The Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground (동해위성발사장), also known as Musudan-ri (Hangul: 무수단리), is a special place in North Korea. It's where they launch rockets into space! Think of it like a spaceport for rockets.
Contents
Where is This Launch Site?
The Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground is located in a part of North Korea called Hwadae County. This area is in North Hamgyong Province. It's close to a cape (a piece of land sticking out into the sea) called Musu Dan. This cape marks the northern end of the East Korea Bay.
The area used to be called Taep'o-dong. This is where the famous Taepodong rockets got their name! The site is about 45 kilometers (28 miles) northeast of a port city called Kimchaek. It's also 45 kilometers from the town of Kilju. There's a small fishing village nearby called Tongha-dong. It has a tiny wharf for small boats.
History of the Launch Site
Building the Site
In the early 1980s, North Korea wanted to test its own rockets. They were learning how to build copies of the Scud-B rocket. They had gotten these rockets from the Soviet Union in the late 1960s.
Before Tonghae, North Korea used a different place to test missiles. But this old site wasn't big enough for their new rockets. The new rockets, like the Hwasong-5, would fly into Chinese waters during tests. So, they needed a bigger, safer place.
Construction of the Tonghae site started in the 1980s and continued into the 1990s. The 117th Regiment of the Air Force Construction Bureau built it. The main launch pad was finished in 1985. At first, the site was very simple. It had only a few roads, a command bunker, a radar station, and some storage areas.
Growing the Launch Facilities
By the early 1990s, the Tonghae site grew much larger. It expanded from 2 kilometers to 9 kilometers. Many new buildings and features were added. These included:
- A building to put missiles together.
- A place to store rocket fuel.
- A center to guide rockets and control their flight.
- Special tracking stations.
Rocket Launches from Tonghae
The first rocket launch from this site happened on April 1, 1984. Since then, many military rockets have been launched from Musudan-ri. These include the Hwasong-5, Rodong-1, and Taepodong-1 types.
In 1998, North Korea said they successfully launched a satellite. It was called Kwangmyŏngsŏng-1. They said it was put into orbit by a Baekdusan-1 rocket from Musudan-ri. However, other countries could not confirm if the satellite really made it into space.
Scientists have looked at satellite images of the site. They saw activity at the rocket engine test stand between 2002 and 2009. This included things like drying grain, cylindrical storage tanks, and vehicles coming and going. Another satellite launch attempt happened in 2006, but it also failed.
A total of 13 launches have been reported from this site. The last one was on April 5, 2009. The facility has not been actively used for launches since 2014.
What's at the Launch Site?
The buildings and equipment at Musudan-ri are not very fancy. They include:
- An old launch pad that is no longer used.
- A newer launch pad.
- The old launch pad has a 30-meter tower with a crane. It also has a flame blast bucket and a special building for launch control. There are also buildings to store liquid fuel.
- An engine test stand, where they test rocket engines.
- A building where missiles are put together and checked.
- A missile control building.
- A Ground Tracking Facility, which helps follow rockets after launch.
See also
- Sohae Satellite Launching Station
- Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site
- Korean People's Army
- Geography of North Korea
