Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

New logo for North Korea's unfortunately-named space agency Nada looks a lot like Nasa's

Nada promises it isn't developing long-range space weapons

Christopher Hooton
Wednesday 02 April 2014 06:05 EDT
Comments
The Nada and Nasa logos are not dissimilar in design
The Nada and Nasa logos are not dissimilar in design (NADA/NASA)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

North Korea's space agency has released a new logo to mark its first anniversary, a blue circular emblem with orbiting rings and a constellation of stars that looks like the sort of fictionalised version of Nasa you might find in a video game.

The Korean Central News Agency made no mention of its foe's space efforts in its report on the new logo of course, explaining that its stars show the desire to "glorify Kim Il-sung's and Kim Jong-il's Korea as a space power".

More embarrassing than the lack of originality and Jetsons-esque font of its logo however is the agency's name, which of course means 'nothing' in Spanish and is a fair representation of North Korea's achievements in space exploration thus far.

Just one satellite has been successfully launched to date (following four failed attempts) but is thought to have malfunctioned, beaming back approximately nada to Earth.

North Korea has insisted that its foray into space is a peaceful one, but various world powers including the US and Japan have expressed concerns that it could bring together ballistic missile technology with its nuclear programme to create some sort of nightmarish long-range space weapon.

"The DPRK has pushed ahead with space development projects to turn the country into a space power, fully exercising its right to peaceful development of the space on a legal basis," the Korean news agency said.

It added that Nada is calling for co-operation with other nations and rejects "double-standards in space activities and the weaponisation of outer space."

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in