TOKYO: One of a set of four spy satellites Japan launched to keep an eye on neighbouring North Korea is not functioning, a Japanese government spokesman said on Tuesday.

The news is another setback for an intelligence-gathering programme that has suffered delays since a domestically developed H2-A rocket carrying two spy satellites veered off course and had to be destroyed in 2003. The malfunctioning radar satellite was one of the first pair launched in March 2003, an official at the Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Centre said. It ceased to function on March 25 apparently due to power supply problems, meaning that it is unable to take photographs, the official said. “The initial intended life of the satellite was five years, and it may be that it has reached that stage a year earlier than planned,” the official said. “We do not think it will be easy to repair.”—Reuters