SEOUL - South Korea has suspended the launch of its space rocket carrying a satellite after an abnormality was detected in the second stage of the rocket, a government official said Thursday.

Vice-Minister of Education, Science and Technology Cho Yul-rae told a briefing that the launch of the Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 (KSLV-1), also known as Naro-1, has been suspended due to "abnormal electrical signals".

The rocket was initially scheduled to take off at 4:00 pm (local time) from the Naro Space Center on the south coast.