TOKYO -- One of North Korea's missile test-firings in May suggests that the country's ballistics development program is nearly complete.
On May 14, Pyongyang launched an intermediate-range missile, what it calls a Hwasong-12. The projectile reached an altitude of more than 2,000km -- well out of the Earth's atmosphere, which is about 480km thick -- then hit the Sea of Japan while traveling at least Mach 15.
