November 14, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
Located 242 kilometers north of the demilitarized zone and only 65 kilometers from the Chinese border, the Yongnim Missile Operating Base is an undeclared ballistic missile operating ICBM base in Chagang Province... A close-up view of the two hardened drive-through missile checkout facilities, May 13, 2002 (Copyright…
October 14, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
Satellite image of the Punggye-ri Nuclear Testing Facility acquired on October 4, 2024, a few days before the rapid escalation of tension in the peninsula, shows that the facility continues to be well maintained... Close-up view of the area around the portal to Tunnel No. 3 (South Portal). Click…
September 30, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
Satellite images of the NK-China border indicate that trade between the two countries is gradually recovering to pre-pandemic levels. However, this restoration of trade was upended when unusually heavy rains struck the area in late July... Overview of the Dandong, Sinuiju, and Uiju Areas, September 8, 2024. (Copyright © 2024 by…
August 8, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
Beyond Parallel reviewed satellite imagery of the Russia-North Korea border at the Tumangang-Khasan railroad crossing from early February to mid-July 2024, a few months before and a few weeks after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to North Korea on June 18. The analysis between February and July 2024 shows a new railcar traffic pattern at the Russia-North Korea border.
July 29, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
Despite the goal of advancing denuclearization of the Korean peninsula through leader-to-leader exchanges in 2018 and 2019, thermal infrared (TIR) imagery of the Yongbyon Nuclear Research Center around the summit dates reveals limited impact on Yongbyon’s overall operational status.
July 2, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
This second part of the missile operating bases update covers developments at Sakkanmol, Sangnam-ni, Sino-ri, and Yusang-ni Missile Operating Bases over the past several years. .. During the past five years, North Korea has undertaken numerous small and significant changes at…
June 27, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
Part 3 of this series builds upon the methodology and findings presented in Part 1, offering a deeper dive into the operational nuances of the Radiochemistry Lab and the centrifuge plant... Thermal infrared (TIR) analysis via LANDSAT 8 and 9 imagery over two years provides key…
June 26, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
Part 2 of this series builds upon the methodology and findings presented in Part 1, offering a deeper dive into the operational nuances of the 5MWe Reactor and the Experimental Light Water Reactor... Closeup of normalized land surface temperature calculated from daytime LANDSAT 8 TIR image taken July…
June 17, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
TIR (TIR) analysis via LANDSAT 8 and 9 imagery over two years provides key insights into Yongbyon nuclear facilities' operations, highlighting the intricate strengths and limitations of thermal imagery for operational assessment... Overview of the normalized land surface temperature calculated from daytime LANDSAT 8 thermal infrared (TIR)…
June 10, 2024, by Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., Victor Cha and Jennifer Jun—
Satellite imagery shows that North Korea has undertaken numerous small and some significant changes at most of its ballistic missile operating bases over the past five years... Overview of the Hoejung-ri Missile Operating Base, March 26, 2024 (Copyright © 2024 by Maxar).…