North Korea's 2017 Nuclear Test Was Probably A Thermonuclear One

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un provides guidance on a nuclear weapons program in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang September 3, 2017. © KCNA / Reuters

Popular Mechanics: North Korea's Latest Nuclear Test Was More Powerful Than We Thought

The 2017 nuclear test was up to two thirds more powerful than the U.S. intelligence community estimated.

North Korea’s most recent nuclear test was far more powerful than the U.S. government claimed. A new analysis of the 2017 test reveals it had an explosive yield of approximately 250 kilotons, or about fifteen times greater than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. The new estimate is dramatically bigger than previous North Korean nuclear tests, lending credence to claims that a thermonuclear device was tested.

The 2017 device was part of a escalating series of nuclear tests, with each more powerful than the last. North Korea’s first nuclear test took place in 2006 and had a estimated yield of .7 to 2 kilotons. The fifth test had an estimated yield of between 15 and 25 kilotons. The device, tested on September 3rd, 2017, caused a magnitude 6.3 earthquake and shifted the mountain, Mt. Mantap, the bomb was tested under.

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WNU Editor: Estimates that this was an explosion with a range of 148 and 328 kilotons, with a likely yield of 250 kilotons, is enough proof to me that this was probably a thermonuclear explosion.