UN Security Council Condemns North Korea Satellite Launch
North Korea announced it launched a satellite into orbit Sunday using a long-range rocket.
The launch came about a month after the communist country's fourth nuclear test, which the United States and other countries view as a banned test of nuclear technology.
Dubbed the Kwangmyongsong-4 after North Korea's late leader, Kim Jong II, the satellite reportedly makes a polar orbit of the Earth every 94 minutes.
In an emergency meeting Sunday, the U.N. Security Council discussed repercussions for the violation of U.N. resolutions.
"We will ensure that the Security Council imposes serious consequences," U.S. Ambassador Samantha Powers said, adding that North Korea's latest transgressions require an "even firmer" response.
That conclusion is based on Pyongyang openly pushing to build ballistic missiles capable of carrying a nuclear payload that can reach the U.S. mainland.
The technology needed to launch a satellite into space can be applied to firing a long-range missile.