The South Korean Ministry of Defense has announced that it has successfully launched a rocket using solid fuel.

It will be the first launch since March this year, saying, ``I would like to show the results after the development process over the next few years in order to strengthen national defense capabilities such as surveillance and reconnaissance.''

The South Korean Ministry of Defense announced on the night of the 30th that it had successfully launched a rocket using solid fuel.



Yonhap News, a South Korean news agency, reports that the solid-fuel rocket test was first conducted in March this year, and this is the first time since then.



South Korea has been restricting the use of solid fuel for rockets based on guidelines exchanged with its ally the United States, but last year agreed to abolish the guidelines and is proceeding with research for practical use in reconnaissance satellites. I came.



Solid-fuel rockets are said to have a simpler structure and superior propulsion power compared to liquid-fuel rockets. I want to show the results over time."



On the other hand, according to South Korean media, police and fire departments were reported one after another, saying that "something like a missile is flying" in various parts of South Korea.



South Korea's Ministry of Defense explained, "Due to military security issues, we were unable to notify the general public."

It is confirmed that the light is rising in the sky in various parts of the country

In addition, after 6:00 pm on the 30th, light was seen rising in the sky over a wide area from Kanto to Kyushu, and sighting information was posted on SNS one after another.



After that, the South Korean Ministry of Defense announced that it had successfully launched a rocket, and an astronomical expert said, "The light is not an astronomical phenomenon, but a rocket."



After 6:00 pm on the 30th, the light rose in the sky over a wide area from Kanto to Kyushu, and it could be seen that the light spread into a triangle.



There were a series of posts on social media, such as ``It moved at high speed while emitting a dazzling light in the shape of a reverse fan,'' and ``There was a light that looked like it was crashing in the west-northwest direction.''



Also, in the image taken by a camera installed by NHK in Gobo City, Wakayama Prefecture, at around 6:07 pm, a yellowish streak of light began to rise in the sky in the northwest direction, and shortly thereafter the light spread into a triangle. You can check the situation.

The light was visible for several minutes, gradually fading to nothing.



After that, the South Korean Ministry of Defense announced that it had successfully launched a rocket using solid fuel.

Expert: "Isn't it caused by rocket injection?"

According to Daichi Fujii, a curator at the Hiratsuka City Museum in Kanagawa Prefecture, who specializes in astronomy, the cameras installed in Hiratsuka City and Fuji City, Shizuoka Prefecture captured light rising in the western sky. That's it.



Regarding this light, Mr. Fujii said, ``If it is a fireball that shines particularly brightly among shooting stars, the light will disappear in 10 seconds or so, and the smoke will not spread, so it is clear that it is not a fireball.''



After that, he said, ``It seems that the volcanic plume spreads three times in about 10 minutes from when it starts to shine until it disappears toward the ground, so it may be due to the ejection of the rocket. It can only be seen under such conditions, but it is extremely rare to see it over such a wide area, including the Tokai and Kanto regions."