N. Korea notifies Japan of 3rd launch try

TOKYO — North Korea told neighboring Japan that it will make a third attempt to launch a military spy satellite in the coming days, Japanese officials said today , after the two previous launches failed. Japan’s coast guard said North Korea notified Tokyo of its plan to launch the satellite sometime between Wednesday and Nov. 30. The notice identified three maritime zones where debris from the rocket carrying the satellite may fall. Two are in the waters between the Korean Peninsula and China and the third in the Philippine Sea, Japanese coastguard spokesperson Kazuo Ogawa said. North Korea gives Japan the launch information because Japan’s coast guard coordinates and distributes maritime safety information in East Asia. The North’s notification came after rival South Korea warned it to cancel its launch plans or face consequences. U.N. Security Council resolutions ban any satellite launches by North Korea because they are seen as a cover for testing its missile technology.