North Korea officials insist that they've launched a satellite into orbit around the Earth via a powerful, multi-stage rocket and that it is broadcasting "immortal revolutionary songs" praising communist leaders. But not so fast, says the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) in Colorado Springs, which reports that the rocket and its payload actually plopped into the Pacific Ocean (via the New York Daily News). The launch of the rocket, identified by U.S. officials as a Taepodong-2, is troubling because it also represents a step forward in the impoverished country's possible efforts to construct a nuclear missile that could strike the United States, writes The New York Times. Diplomats are debating how to address North Korea's action, according to The Washington Post. Such launches don't appear to be good for the planet's protective ozone layer either, according to a researcher with the University of Colorado (via The Los Angeles Times).