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Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site () was the only known
nuclear test site Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine nuclear weapons' effectiveness, yield, and explosive capability. Testing nuclear weapons offers practical information about how the weapons function, how detonations are affected by ...
of
North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...
.
Nuclear tests Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine nuclear weapons' effectiveness, yield, and explosive capability. Testing nuclear weapons offers practical information about how the weapons function, how detonations are affected by ...
were conducted at the site in October 2006, May 2009, February 2013, January 2016, September 2016, and September 2017.


Geography

The site was established in the early 2000s and has three visible tunnel entrances. Based on satellite imagery, its exact location is in mountainous terrain in
Kilju County Kilju, sometimes romanized as Kilchu, is a county in North Hamgyong province, North Korea. The county seat is Kilju Town. History The area around Kilju was part of the ancient Goguryeo kingdom and was long inhabited by various Jurchen tribes. In ...
,
North Hamgyong Province North Hamgyong Province (Hamgyŏngbukdo, ) is the northernmost province of North Korea. The province was formed in 1896 from the northern half of the former Hamgyong Province. Geography The province is bordered by China (Jilin) on the north, S ...
. It is south of
Mantapsan Mantapsan (or Mount Mant'ap, Chosŏn'gŭl: ) is a mountain in the south of North Hamgyong Province in North Korea. The granite peak, which reaches an elevation of , is part of the Hamgyong Mountains. It is located on the border between Kilju Coun ...
, west of
Hwasong concentration camp Hwasong concentration camp (Chosŏn'gŭl: , also spelled Hwasŏng or Hwaseong) is a labor camp in North Korea for political prisoners. The official name is Kwan-li-so (Penal-labor colony) No. 16. Location The camp is located in Hwasong Count ...
and northwest of the
Punggye-ri P'unggye-ri is a village located in Kilju County, North Hamgyong Province, North Korea. The Punggye Station serves the village. The Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site is located nearby. See also

* Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site - The primary nuclea ...
village. The most proximate settlement to the possible nuclear underground test site is Chik-tong, a small populated place located at .
Sungjibaegam Sungjibaegam is a locality in Paegam County, Ryanggang Province in North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula a ...
is a settlement located from the tremor of the 2013 test. Punggye-ri railway station is located at .


History

In January 2013,
Google Maps Google Maps is a web mapping platform and consumer application offered by Google. It offers satellite imagery, aerial photography, street maps, 360° interactive panoramic views of streets ( Street View), real-time traffic conditions, and rou ...
was updated to include various locations in North Korea. On 8 April 2013, it was reported that South Korea had observed activity at Punggye-ri, suggesting that a fourth nuclear test was being prepared, but the next test did not occur until January 2016. On 6 January 2016, North Korean state media announced a fourth nuclear test had been carried out successfully at the location using a
hydrogen bomb A thermonuclear weapon, fusion weapon or hydrogen bomb (H bomb) is a second-generation nuclear weapon design. Its greater sophistication affords it vastly greater destructive power than first-generation nuclear bombs, a more compact size, a lowe ...
.
Satellite imagery Satellite images (also Earth observation imagery, spaceborne photography, or simply satellite photo) are images of Earth collected by imaging satellites operated by governments and businesses around the world. Satellite imaging companies sell ima ...
captured for monitoring website
38 North ''38 North'' is a website devoted to analysis about North Korea. Its name refers to the 38th parallel north which passes through the Korean peninsula and from 1945 until the start of the Korean War in 1950 divided the peninsula into North and Sou ...
between January and April 2017 suggested that a sixth nuclear test was being prepared at the site, which was detonated on 3 September 2017. According to sources, people from the Punggye-ri nuclear test site have been banned from entering Pyongyang since the test due to the possibility of being radioactively contaminated. According to the report of defectors, about 80% of trees died and all of the underground wells dried up in the site after the sixth nuclear test. On 3 and 23 September 2017, earthquakes which seem to be collapses of tunnels were detected with magnitude of 4.1 and 3.6 respectively. A 17 October 2017 study published by the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University suggested the most recent test had caused "substantial damage to the existing tunnel network under
Mount Mantap Mantapsan (or Mount Mant'ap, Chosŏn'gŭl: ) is a mountain in the south of North Hamgyong Province in North Korea. The granite peak, which reaches an elevation of , is part of the Hamgyong Mountains. It is located on the border between Kilju Coun ...
". On 30 October 2017, in testimony before the South Korean parliament, the director of South Korea's Meteorological Administration warned that "further tests at Punggye-ri could cause the mountain to collapse and release radioactivity into the environment." Likewise,
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
scientists warned that if the mountain collapsed, nuclear fallout could spread across "an entire hemisphere." On 1 November 2017 Japanese TV station
TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Compan ...
reported that according to unconfirmed reports, several tunnels collapsed at the test site on 10 October 2017. An initial collapse was said to have killed 100 workers, with another 100 rescuers killed in a second collapse. On 20 April 2018 the North Korean government announced that it would suspend nuclear tests and shut down the Punggye-ri nuclear test site. On 14 May 2018 it was reported that commercial satellite imagery indicated that dismantling of the facilities at the test site had begun. The leader and Supreme Commander of North Korea Kim Jong-un determined the date for the closing ceremony of Punggye-ri - 23-25 May 2018. The government of North Korea allowed a handful of international journalists (but none from South Korea) to observe the closing ceremony. Notably absent would be experts or inspectors who could study the test site at close quarters. On 24 May 2018 foreign journalists reported that tunnels in the Punggye-ri nuclear test site had been destroyed by the North Korean government in a move to reduce regional tensions. However, despite the active tunnel entrances being demolished, the tunnels themselves were not destroyed and the tunnels that were never used in testing were not part of the public demolition. Additionally, the majority of the administrative and support facilities along Punggye-ri's 17-km-long complex were not demolished, and caretaker activities have been noted as recently as 25 November 2020.
David Albright David Albright, M.Sc., is an American physicist and a weapons expert who is the founder of the non-governmental Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), its current president, and author of several books on proliferation of atom ...
of the
Institute for Science and International Security The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) is a nonprofit, non-governmental institution to inform the public about "science and policy issues affecting international security". Founded in 1993, the group is led by founder and ...
noted: Observers noted that the site was rehabilitated in early 2022 for possible nuclear cruise missile warhead tests later in the year. The United States, Korea and Japan stated on October 26, 2022 that North Korea would receive an "overwhelming, decisive" and "unparalleled" response from the three nations if testing was renewed.


International observations

On 31 October 2018, Kim Min-ki, a lawmaker in South Korea's ruling Democratic Party, stated that now defunct Punggye-ri was among other nuclear and missile test sites which had been observed by officials from South Korea's National Intelligence Service and that it was now ready for planned international inspection.


References

{{Nuclear program of North Korea North Korean nuclear test sites Nuclear program of North Korea Nuclear accidents and incidents Disasters in North Korea Tunnel disasters Geography of North Hamgyong Military installations established in 2006 Military installations closed in 2018 Buildings and structures demolished in 2018 2006 establishments in North Korea 2018 disestablishments in North Korea