A 3.4 magnitude earthquake has sparked fears in North Korea after being detected.
The earthquake occurred about 50km from nuclear test site just as previous quakes have occurred during weapon tests.
However an official at south Korea’s meteorological agency said its initial analysis of the tremor which it put at magnitude 3.0, showed it was a natural quake and other experts doubted the tremors were related to a weapons test.
Chinese seismologists said it was a “suspected explosion”. But South Korea says that it could be a natural quake not caused by a nuclear test. North Korea carried out a massive nuclear test on September 3, 2017 which has been widely condemned at the UN.
According to South Korea’s meteorological agency, the latest quake was recorded at a depth of 0km in North Hamgyong province, home to the Punggye-ri nuclear site. It said it believed the quake was natural because the specific soundwaves generated by artificial earthquakes were not detected.