The Nodong-1, sometimes Rodong-1, is a single stage, mobile liquid propellant medium range ballistic missile developed by North Korea. Developed in the mid-1980s, it is an adaptation of the Soviet SS-1, more commonly known by its NATO reporting name "Scud."

It is believed North Korea obtained Scud-B designs from Egypt and possibly Scud-C designs from the People's Republic of China, and reverse-engineered them into a larger, longer-distance weapon dubbed the Nodong. U.S. reconnaissance satellites first detected this type in May 1990. North Korea alarmed Japan in 1993 by launching a test missile towards Honshu, although the missile fell harmlessly into the Sea of Japan.

The precise capabilities and specifications of the missile are unknown; even the fact of its production and deployment are controversial. It is accepted to be a larger variant of the Scud-C, with a reported mass of 15,000-16,000 kg, with a diameter of about 1.3 m and a length of 15-17 m. Its range is estimated between 1000 and 1300 km and its maximum payload between 700 and 750 kg. Its poor accuracy makes it ineffectual against hardened military targets, however, so its speculated use would be to deliver a high explosive or chemical warhead against large installations or cities.

Variants called the Nodong-2, Nodong-B , and Nodong-X were developed, but production was halted in 1996 or 1997 due to North Korea's severe economic hardships, and to focus resources on the more advanced Taepodong design. The Nodong-1 remained a lucrative export, however. Libya and Syria are believed to possess Nodong-1s, and variants are believed to be the basis for Iran's Shahab-3 and Pakistan's Ghauri missiles.

References

• Center for Non-proliferation Studies , North Korea's Ballistic Missile Program
• Claremont Institute, MissileThreat.com, No-dong 1
• GlobalSecurity.org, Nodong-1
• National Threat Initiative, Nodong: Overview and Technical Assessment

See also

• Scud
• Taepodong
• Military of North Korea
• List of Korea-related topics