09.09.2016: In the early morning hours of this Friday, September 9, a seismic shock was registered worldwide. It originated in North Korea at the site where nuclear weapons are tested. The characteristics of the seismic signals indicate that the source was a nuclear bomb.

The GFZ’s GEOFON station at Flechtingen (Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany) registered the seismic waves with a magnitude of M 5.3 for this event. The location of the event is almost the same as the previous known explosions in 2006, 2009, 2013 and 2016.  

The graph shows the amplitude of seismic P-waves reaching Sachsen-Anhalt in Germany 11 minutes after the origin of the seismic shock in North Korea. P-waves are the fastest elastic waves (P stands for primary) caused by earthquakes. Compared to 2009, 2013, and 2016A, the current event (2016B) shows clearly the highest amplitudes. The amplitude of seismic waves emitted by underground explosions is mostly determined by the intensity of the initial shock but is also influenced by the depth of and the rock properties at the explosion site. (jz)

>>For more information see the BGR website

>>Information on the detection of atomic axplosions