朝鲜因技术缺陷推迟火箭发射

North Korea's space authorities Monday extended the time frame to launch the country's newest rocket by a week, to Dec. 29, after encountering a 'technical deficiency' with its first stage.

周一，朝鲜负责宇宙空间活动的机构将发射最新火箭的最晚时间推迟一周，至12月29日，原因是火箭第一级存在“技术缺陷。

In a Dec. 1 announcement, North Korea said it would launch a rocket sometime between Dec. 10 and 22. Before North Korea's declaration, authorities in South Korea and elsewhere, using satellite photos, noticed what appeared to be preparatory activity at the North's launch site in the northwest corner of the country.

朝鲜方面12月1日称，将在12月10日至22日之间发射一枚火箭。在朝鲜宣布这一决定之前，韩国和其他国家的有关部门以卫星图片为证据指出，朝鲜西北角的火箭发射点似乎在进行准备活动。

North Korea said it would send a satellite into space with the launch. Other countries, however, see the rocket launch as cover for a test of a long-range missile.

朝鲜说，发射火箭的同时将把一颗卫星送入太空。不过其他国家认为，火箭发射是为了掩盖远程导弹测试。

The launch would be the second of 2012. In April, a rocket broke apart after about 80 seconds of flight. North Korea previously attempted long-range missile flights in 1998, 2006 and 2009.

这将是朝鲜今年第二次火箭发射活动。今年4月，朝鲜发射的一枚火箭在升空大约80秒之后爆炸。此前，朝鲜曾在1998年、2006年和2009年尝试过发射远程导弹。

Early Sunday, North Korean state media said scientists were considering delaying the launch. That led authorities and analysts to speculate about what effect recent winter weather was having on launch plans. Last week, snow swept across the Korean peninsula.

朝鲜国有媒体上周日早上报道说，科研人员正在考虑推迟火箭发射。各国政府和分析人士因此纷纷猜测最近的严冬天气对发射计划有何影响。上周，一场大雪降临在整个朝鲜半岛。

On Monday afternoon, North Korean state media released a two-sentence statement from the Korean Committee of Space Technology, saying preparations by scientists and technicians were 'at a final phase.'

周一下午，朝鲜国有媒体发布了朝鲜宇宙空间技术委员会(Korean Committee of Space Technology)只有两句话的一则声明，声明中说，科研人员的准备工作已经进入最后阶段。

The committee added, 'They, however, found technical deficiency in the first-stage control engine module of the rocket carrying the satellite and decided to extend the satellite launch period up to Dec. 29.'

朝鲜宇宙空间技术委员会补充说，不过，科研人员发现卫星运载火箭的第一级控制引擎模块存在技术缺陷，决定将火箭发射的最晚时间推迟到12月29日。

No further explanation was given.

声明没有做更多解释。

After making the Dec. 1 announcement, North Korea notified international aviation and maritime authorities that the rocket would take a route similar to the one in April, flying south over the Yellow Sea and East China Sea, east of China and Taiwan, and over the Philippines.

在12月1日宣布了上述决定后，朝鲜通知国际航空和海事组织，此次火箭发射的升空路径与4月的火箭发射相似，将向南经过黄海(Yellow Sea)、东中国海(East China Sea，中国称东海)、中国大陆和台湾东部，以及菲律宾上空。