Seoul : South Korean military sources said that the first South Korean military spy satellite succeeded in transmitting “good-resolution” images of central Pyongyang.
The sources said on Sunday that this satellite was placed in orbit from the US Space Force's Vandenberg Base in California on December 2, allowing South Korea to take satellite images independently of the North Korean military and its leadership.
South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported that the electro-optical infrared (EO/IR) satellite is sending satellite images of North Korean areas, including Pyongyang, in a test transmission.
The sources did not specify what was photographed, but the images cover the central area of Pyongyang, which includes the headquarters of the Workers' Party of Korea, where leader Kim Jong-un's office is located.
Once the original satellite becomes fully operational by June or July as planned, it is expected to help reduce South Korea's heavy reliance on US satellite images of North Korea, which could contribute to enhancing South Korea's capabilities to independently monitor North Korea.
By 2025, South Korea plans to send four more satellites into space to better monitor North Korea, including a second synthetic aperture radar system satellite scheduled for launch in April from an air base in Florida.