Fresh off a handful of once-thought-to-be-impossible breakthroughs that included testing a hydrogen bomb and successfully fermenting (according to them, of course) “hangover-free” alcohol, North Korea and its fearless supreme leader Kim Jong-un have announced to the United Nations and the rest of the world that they plan on launching a long-range rocket sometime this month to “put a satellite into orbit”.

The name of the rocket? Kwangmyongsong. Which, somehow, has an English translation equating to “Lodestar”.

This from The New York Times:

The agency, the International Maritime Organization, said Tuesday that it had received a notification from the North Korean authorities of a multistage rocket launch between the hours of 7 a.m. and noon local time, on an as-yet unspecified day between Feb. 8 and 25.

If the launch goes as planned, the notification said, the rocket’s first stage will fall in waters off the west coast of South Korea, and the second stage in waters east of the Philippines.

What may not surprise you AT ALL is that this declaration comes in response to the United States and allied nations warning North Korea not to do the above, because (mhmm) it would be considered a “cover for developing an intercontinental ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear bomb”.

As you may know, according to a bunch of U.N. resolutions, North Korea is prohibited from doing such a thing — and thank goodness that’s the case.

Oh, and that’s not all. The U.N. is also in the process of trying to figure out how they’re going to slap Kim Jong-un and company on the risk for their hydrogen bomb escapade last month.

“This latest announcement further underscores the need for the international community to send the North Koreans a swift, firm message that its disregard — that their disregard for U.N. Security Council obligations will not be tolerated,” said the State Department spokesman, John Kirby.

South Korea officials are calling the most recent announcement a “direct challenge to the international community”.