N. Korea likely to have restarted plutonium reactor: U.S. think tank
North Korea is suspected of having resumed operations at its plutonium production facility, a U.S. institute monitoring the site said Friday.
Commercial satellite imagery from Jan. 22 showed "a water plume originating from the cooling water outlet of the reactor, an indication that the reactor is very likely operating," the U.S.-Korea Institute of Johns Hopkins University said on its 38 North website, referring to the Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center.
A river running along the nuclear site that is usually frozen at this time of the year was not frozen where the water plume mixes with the river, the institute said. North Korea is keen to improve its nuclear weapons including those to be mounted on intercontinental ballistic missiles to counter what Pyongyang claims is the threat from the United States.
"Without being able to measure the water temperature rise or water flow from the reactor, it is impossible to estimate at what power level the reactor is running, although it may be considerable," the institute added.
According to the institute, the nuclear facility at Yongbyon has been stalled since the second half of 2015. The United States, Japan and South Korea have been on alert for possible provocations by North Korea such as missile launches and nuclear tests.