Publications and Analyses

The latest publications and analyses from Open Nuclear Network

StoryMaps: High-Explosives Testing in the DPRK and Comparative Analyses to Nuclear-Armed States

As part of the multi-year project, Open-Source Assessments of the DPRK’s Nuclear Programme, we are releasing a suite of interactive maps and deep-dive analyses into the DPRK’s high-explosive testing infrastructure. By comparing North Korean facilities with known sites in other nuclear-armed states, this research provides a new baseline for understanding the DPRK's progress toward sophisticated weaponisation

March 25, 2026

The Geography of Nuclear Restraint in a Fragmenting Order

As arms control erodes, nuclear-weapon-free zones are becoming among the last durable frameworks for collective nuclear restraint. This ONN report finds that NWFZs strengthen regional confidence, safeguards, and nuclear governance, yet remain unevenly supported, constrained by capacity gaps, weak coordination, unresolved protocols, and structural blind spots requiring renewed political attention today.

April 16, 2026

US-China Nuclear Escalation Risk

This ONN assessment maps the pathways that could drive U.S.-China nuclear escalation by 2030, finding that forward U.S. nuclear deployments in the Indo-Pacific are the most significant amplifier of risk.

March 17, 2026

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Jeffrey Glenn Lewis

May 14, 2020

Monitoring Iran's Solid Rocket Program from Space

On April 22, Iran placed a small satellite in orbit. The space launch was notable for two reasons. First, the launch was conducted by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC), not Iran's civilian space program. Second, the rocket used a new solid-propellant second stage (the Salman), which th...

Laura Rockwood

Veronika Bedenko

May 01, 2020

Nuclear Risk Reduction and COVID-19: What One Existential Threat Can Teach Us about Another

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, competing international security priorities including arms control, nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament, are taking a back seat. The delayed response to COVID-19 suggests some troubling analogies to the current state of affairs in the nuclear arena.

Threat similarities between nuclear weapons and COVID-19

Tianran Xu

Jaewoo Shin

April 23, 2020

A Tale of Two Missiles: Analysis of KCNA Reports on DPRK's KN-23 and KN-24 Short-Range Ballistic Missiles

Since May 2019, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has repeatedly tested two new solid-fuel short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM). Unlike liquid SRBMs such as the SCUD-B/C, the KN-23 and KN-24 missile systems have different designs, means of transportation, and launch methods. However,...

Tianran Xu

March 23, 2020

Analysis of the KN-25 Multiple Rocket Launcher System after the 9 March 2020 DPRK Test

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea launched at least two "super-large calibre" multiple rocket launcher rounds into the Sea of Japan or East Sea on 9 March 2020. It is the sixth confirmed test launch of the system, with a total of at least 12 such rockets having been launched since it was dev...

Melissa Hanham

November 15, 2019

Image Analysis of North Korea's ICBMs for Countermeasures

While there is insufficient evidence to prove that North Korea is pursuing countermeasures or penetration aids (penaids), the lack of evidence certainly does not prove that they are not.

Melissa Hanham

November 15, 2019

North Korea's Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles & Countermeasures

Every state that has developed intercontinental ballistic missiles has considered how to deliver a nuclear payload to its target without interference.

Melissa Hanham

November 15, 2019

Countering Ballistic Missile Defence: North Korea's Approach

North Korea's rapid development of missile capabilities has prioritized technological advancement, range, and payload delivery in order to achieve Kim Jong Un’s goal of delivering a nuclear weapon to the US mainland.

Stanley Center for Peace and Security

Open Nuclear Network

July 01, 2019

The Gray Spectrum

Ethical Decision Making with Geospatial and Open Source Analysis

In July 2019, the Stanley Center for Peace and Security and Open Nuclear Network convened a workshop with nonproliferation experts, open source intelligence analysts, journalists and stakeholders from satellite imagery firms. The workshop asked participants to explore ethical challenges with their w...

Exhaust plume from a North Korean short-range ballistic missile test