▲ This photo, provided by Seoul's defense ministry, shows a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying South Korea's first homegrown spy satellite ready for lift off at U.S. Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

S Korea-spy satellite

S. Korea's first spy satellite launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base

SEOUL, Dec. 2 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's first indigenous spy satellite was launched from U.S. Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Friday (local time) on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

The Falcon 9 lifted off at 10:19 a.m. Friday and separated the first and second stage rockets 2 minutes and 22 seconds after the launch as scheduled.

The launch was initially planned for Nov. 30 but was delayed by two days due to bad weather.

Beginning with an electro-optical and infrared satellite, South Korea plans to launch four more synthetic aperture radar satellites by 2025 to better monitor North Korea.

The launch comes after North Korea placed its first spy satellite in orbit on Nov. 21, following two failed attempts earlier this year.

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