PYONGYANG, North Korea — A satellite launch North Korea had hailed as a moment of national pride ended in failure today when the rocket disintegrated over the Yellow Sea, earning Pyongyang embarrassment as well as condemnation from a host of nations that deemed it a covert test of missile technology.

In a rare move, Pyongyang admitted that the rocket did not deliver a satellite, but it also pressed ahead with grandiose propaganda in praise of the ruling Kim family.

The United States and South Korea declared the early-morning launch a failure minutes after the rocket shot out from the North’s west coast. North Korea acknowledged that some four hours later in an announcement broadcast on state TV, saying the satellite that the rocket was carrying did not enter orbit.

North Korea had held up the launch as a scientific achievement and even a gift for its late founder, Kim Il Sung, two days before the 100th anniversary of his birth. It pressed ahead even as world leaders vowed to take action in the U.N. Security Council against what they called a flagrant violation of international resolutions prohibiting North Korea from developing its nuclear and missile programs.

The rocket’s destruction suggests the country has yet to master the technology needed to build long-range missiles that could threaten the United States.