Japan Launches Spy Satellite to Monitor North Korea Missiles

Defense News ,Japan :- Japan has just launched its own special satellite, called Optical-8. This satellite is like a high-tech eye in the sky, and it will watch over North Korea to keep an eye on what they're doing militarily.

The launch happened at the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan, using a big rocket made by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. The Japanese government happily reported that the satellite smoothly separated from the rocket and is now happily orbiting in space as planned.

This high-tech eye, the Optical-8, can take very detailed pictures of North Korea's military sites. However, it might struggle a bit in really bad weather.

Hiroki Yasuda, who works at Tokyo’s satellite intelligence center, explained that it will take a few months before Optical-8 starts sending back important information.

This launch is important because Japan wants to be on top of things in the Indo-Pacific region. Tensions are rising, especially with North Korea and China flexing their military muscles.

In 2023, North Korea proudly announced that it launched a special satellite that could take pictures of the Pentagon, the big military building in the United States.

Yasuda stressed how crucial this new satellite is for Japan. He said, "As the world around Japan gets more dangerous and we face more natural disasters, having satellites that can gather information is super important for our foreign affairs, defense, security, and dealing with disasters. We need to keep getting better at gathering intelligence."