North Korea launches rocket it says carrying satellite

North Korea launched a long-range rocket carrying what it has said is a satellite, South Korea's defense ministry said, in defiance of United Nations sanctions barring it from using ballistic missile technology.

Airbus Defense & Space and 38 North satellite imagery from February 4, 2016 shows the Sohae Satellite Launching Station in North Korea Source: AAP

North Korea had notified UN agencies that it planned to launch a rocket carrying an Earth observation satellite, triggering opposition from governments that see it as a long-range missile test.