The satellite that North Korea attempted to put into orbit in May was so rudimentary that it could never serve as a functioning spy satellite as North Korea wished, the South Korean military said on Wednesday. North ​Korea ​launched a new rocket, the Collima-1, on May 31, with the hope of putting ​its first military reconnaissance satellite, the Malligyong-1, into orbit. The rocket, which set off alarms and a false evacuation order in Seoul, malfunctioned and crashed into the sea off South Korea’s west coast shortly after launch. South Korea sent military aircraft, vessels and deep-sea divers to search for ​debris that would yield clues about the North’s rocket and satellite technology. The South ​had already salvaged parts of the rocket but ​confirmed on Wednesday that ​its military had also salvaged “key components” of the satellite.

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Persons: ​ Korea ​, ​ Organizations: South Korean Locations: Korea, North Korea, ​ Korea, Seoul, South Korea