Estimates of the size of North Korea’s test in September 2017 place it between 70 and 280 kilotons of TNT equivalent.
North Korea’s leader, Chairman Kim Jong Un, clearly is in no hurry to demilitarize his country. In the wake of two historic yet unproductive summits with President Trump, Kim made a state visit in April to Moscow, where he made clear that his country will not give up its nuclear weapons without international security guarantees. North Korea also tested what appeared to be short-range missiles on April 18 and May 4.
A nation in the darkFor an isolated nation like North Korea, developing a functional nuclear weapons program is a historic feat. Just eight other sovereign states have accomplished this goal—the five declared nuclear weapons states plus Israel, India and Pakistan. North Korea conducted its first nuclear test on Oct. 6, 2006. Many experts considered the test to be unsuccessful because the size of the explosion, as determined from seismograms, was relatively small. However, that conclusion was based on incomplete information. And the test still served as a powerful domestic propaganda tool and international display of might.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un watching the test-fire of an intercontinental ballistic missile in July, 2017. STR/AFP/Getty Images Additionally, my research and work by other scientists have shown that many types of rock enhance the production of earthquake-like seismic waves by underground explosions. The more energy from an explosion that gets converted into these earthquake-like waves, the more difficult it becomes to estimate the size of the explosion.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Trump confident 'deal will happen' with Kim Jong Un despite North Korea projectile launch'Deal will happen!” the president tweeted Saturday.
Read more »
Otto Warmbier's mother calls Trump's North Korea policy a 'charade,' compares Kim Jong Un to Hitler'If we ignore this cancer, it’s not going to go away, it’s going to kill all of us,' Cindy Warmbier said.
Read more »
North Korea says Kim oversaw testing of multiple rocket launchersNorth Korea says it conducted a 'strike drill' for multiple launchers, firing tactical guided weapons into the East Sea in a military drill.
Read more »
North Korea says recent rocket drill was 'regular and self-defensive': KCNALast week's 'strike drill' in which North Korean leader Kim Jong ...
Read more »
Kim Jong Un launched a barrage of rockets and missiles in an unexpected show of forceRocket Man is back with a new missile and a possible warning to the Trump administration that Pyongyang's patience is wearing thin.
Read more »
North Korea’s dictator does not look as clever as he did a year agoVladimir Putin loves to needle and upstage America, but he is not about to bail out the failed North Korean state
Read more »
North Korea tests new missile — and Trump's resolvePresident Trump downplays new North Korea missile tests: 'I believe that Kim Jong Un fully realizes the great economic potential of North Korea, & will do nothing to interfere or end it.'
Read more »
Vietnam suspect in Kim Jong Nam's killing freed from prisonKAJANG, Malaysia (AP) — A Vietnamese embassy translator says the Vietnamese woman who was tried for the killing of the estranged half brother of North Korea's leader has been released from a...
Read more »
Murder at the airport: the brazen attack on Kim Jong NamEarly on a February morning two years ago, a balding man in a gray suit entered ...
Read more »
Kim Jong Nam Murder Affair Comes to a Close With Release of Doan Thi HuongA Vietnamese woman who stood trial for killing the half-brother of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un was released in Malaysia and will return home, ending a high-profile murder mystery.
Read more »