On Feb. 16, Juche 31 (1942), Kim Jong Il was born in Mt. Paektu as the son of guerillas. The anti-Japanese revolutionary fighters called him a bright star over Mt. Paektu, out of their wish that he would glorify Korea in the future.

In his lifetime, Kim Jong Il devoted his all to carrying forward to completion the cause of the Songun (military-first) revolution, pioneered by President Kim Il Sung.

He formulated the Juche idea, the revolutionary idea of the President, as the guiding idea in the era of independence.

Meanwhile, he turned the Workers' Party of Korea into the general staff of the revolution with the strict monolithic ideological system and the DPRK into an invincible socialist country where the leader, the party and the masses are united as one and into a world-level military power with inexhaustible strength.

That was why Kim Il Sung composed a poem "Shining Star" in praise of Kim Jong Il's great feats for the country and the times on his 50th birthday.

Since then, the word "Shining Star" has been considered a symbol of the nation's sovereignty and dignity as well as a symbol of prosperous Korea.

So, the DPRK's satellites, too, are called Kwangmyongsong in Korean word, which translates into the shining star.