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SEOUL – A small natural earthquake detected in North Korea on Wednesday (Jan 29) was likely a result of seismic instability lingering in the area since North Korea conducted its sixth and largest nuclear test in 2017, the South Korean government said.
A magnitude 2.5 earthquake was detected at 9.33am (8.33am Singapore time) in Hamgyong province, the location of North Korea’s shuttered Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site, according to South Korea’s Meteorological Administration (KMA).
“It was a natural earthquake, presumably caused by the sixth nuclear test,” the administration said in a statement on its website.
“The area is about 3km south-east of the sixth nuclear test site.”
Punggye-ri is the only known site in North Korea used to test nuclear weapons. At least six tests were conducted there between October 2006 and September 2017.
In early 2018, North Korea said it would close the site, saying its nuclear force was complete.
The entrances to tunnels at the site were blown up in front of a small group of foreign media invited to view the demolition, but North Korea rejected calls for international experts to inspect the closure.
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