Chronology of North Korean Missile Development

North Korea launched a ballistic missile over Japanese territory on Tuesday, in a surprise move that ramped up international alarm over its weapons program.  

Here are the key dates in Pyongyang's quest to develop a missile capable of hitting the United States:

Late 1970s: North Korea starts working on a version of the Soviet Scud-B (range 300 kilometers or 185 miles). Test-fired in 1984

1987-92: Begins developing variant of Scud-C (range 500 km), Rodong-1 (1,300 km), Taepodong-1 (2,500 km), Musudan-1 (3,000 km) and Taepodong-2 (6,700 km)

Aug 1998: Test-fires Taepodong-1 rocket over Japan in what it calls a satellite launch -- the U.S. and others say it is a missile

Sept 1999: Declares moratorium on long-range missile tests amid improving ties with U.S.

July 12, 2000: Fifth round of U.S.-North Korean missile talks ends without agreement after North demands $1 billion a year in return for halting missile exports

March 3, 2005: Pyongyang ends moratorium on long-range missile testing, blames Bush administration's "hostile" policy

July 5, 2006: Test-fires seven missiles, including a long-range Taepodong-2 which explodes after 40 seconds

Oct 9, 2006: Conducts underground nuclear test, its first

April 5, 2009: Launches long-range rocket which flies over Japan and lands in the Pacific, in what it says is an attempt to put a satellite into orbit. The United States, Japan and South Korea see it as a disguised test of a Taepodong-2

May 25, 2009: Conducts its second underground nuclear test, several times more powerful than the first

April 13, 2012: Launches what it has said is a long-range rocket to put a satellite into orbit, but which disintegrates soon after blast-off 

December 12, 2012: Launches a multi-stage rocket and successfully places an Earth observational satellite in orbit

February 12, 2013: Conducts its third underground nuclear test

January 6, 2016: Conducts its fourth underground nuclear test, which it says was a hydrogen bomb -- a claim doubted by most experts

March 9, 2016: Kim Jong-Un claims the North has successfully miniaturized a thermo-nuclear warhead

April 23, 2016: Pyongyang test-fires a submarine-launched ballistic missile

July 8, 2016: U.S. and South Korea announce plans to deploy an advanced missile defense system -- THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense)

August 3, 2016: North Korea fires a ballistic missile directly into Japan's maritime economic zone for the first time

September 9, 2016: Conducts fifth nuclear test

March 6, 2017: Fires four ballistic missiles in what it says is an exercise to hit U.S. bases in Japan

March 7, 2017: U.S. begins deploying THAAD missile defense system in South Korea

May 14, 2017: North Korea fires a ballistic missile which flies 700 kilometers before landing in the Sea of Japan. Analysts say it has an imputed range of 4,500 kilometers (2,800 miles) and brings Guam within reach

July 4, 2017: Test-fires a ballistic missile that analysts say brings Alaska within reach. Pyongyang later says it was a "landmark" test of a Hwasong-14 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) 

July 28, 2017: Launches a missile with a theoretical range of 10,000 kilometers, meaning it could hit much of the United States 

August 26, 2017: Fires three short-range ballistic missiles

August 29, 2017: Fires ballistic missile across Japanese territory. South Korea says it was launched from Sunan, near Pyongyang and flew around 2,700 kilometers at a maximum altitude of around 550 kilometers.