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38 North
North Korea Resumes Construction of Light Water Reactor: Completion of Buildings May Be Near
After months of inactivity, North Korea has resumed work on its new experimental light water reactor (ELWR), which the DPRK claims is intended to help solve domestic energy shortages, but is also an important component in its effort to build nuclear weapons. Commercial satellite photography from April 30, 2012 reveals that Pyongyang is now close [...]
North Korean Nuclear Test Preparations: An Update
Recent press reports on the impending North Korean nuclear test have been ambiguous. Some have quoted reliable sources that a test is imminent. Others have stated that there are no obvious signs that a test will happen soon. The most recent commercial satellite imagery available of the Punggye-ri Nuclear Test facility supports the contention that [...]
GoogleEarth 3D Model of the Unha-3 Flight Path
DPRK Study Team members, Lew Franklin and Dick Donald, at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) have developed a GoogleEarth model of the Unha-3 trajectory. This model is based on Unha-2 physical measurement estimates by MIT’s Theodore Postol, but with flight parameters significantly modified by new [...]
Will Kim Jong Un Visit the Rocket Launch?
North Korea appears to have been conducting a beautification effort at the Sohae launch center before its upcoming rocket launch. Whether that effort is related to the visit of foreign press on April 8, of foreign observers, or of government dignitaries remains unclear. But it is worth noting that Kim Jong Il observed the April 5, 2009 launch of [...]
Is the Rocket on the Sohae Launch Pad? A 38 North Exclusive
Analysis of commercial satellite photographs taken on April 4 of North Korea’s Sohae Launch Center indicates some evidence to suggest that the first stage of the Unha-3 rocket, while not visible, may be stacked in the gantry. If Pyongyang is following the timeline previously published by 38 North (based on the experience of past rocket [...]
New Evidence of Advanced Preparations for DPRK Rocket Launch: 38 North Exclusive
Satellite photography of the Sohae Satellite Launching Station (Tongchang-dong Space Launch Center) reveals that North Korea has undertaken more extensive preparations for its planned April rocket launch than previously understood. Figure 1: The Sohae Satellite Launching Station (Tongchang-dong Space Launch Center) 38 North has now [...]
