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| Artificial earthquake epicenter in North Korea (USGS) |
An artificial earthquake of magnitude 5.1 has been detected in North Korea Wednesday morning at 10:30 a.m. local time near the site of previous nuclear tests.
Later, North Korea confirmed that it had conducted a powerful hydrogen bomb test, The Associated Press reported.
According to the United States Geological Survey, the seismic activity had a magnitude of 5.1 located 21 km ENE of Sungjibaegam. Weak shaking of MMI III have been reported from Sŭngjibaegam, Yanggang and Sŏngjin, Hamgyŏngbukto.
An official from the Korea Meteorological Administration, South Korea's weather agency, said the agency believed the earthquake was caused artificially, based on an analysis of the seismic waves and because it originated 49 kilometers (30 miles) north of Kilju, the northeastern area where North Korea's main nuclear test site is located, ABC News has written.