World

Has Iran conducted underground nuclear test?

Published by

Kashif Zia

2 years ago

ISLAMABAD: Speculations emerged on social media claiming that Iran has conducted a nuclear test, attributing it to the earthquake, which struck Iran and neighboring countries on October 5.

The epicenter of a 4.6 magnitude earthquake was a mere 10 kilometers in the Aradan city of Semnan Province, which is relatively shallow for seismic activities of this nature. The tremors were felt in Tehran which is 110 kilometers away from the epicenter of the earthquake, reports the US Geological Survey.

Immediately following the seismic activity, social media was abuzz with users linking termors to potential nuclear tests. Some pointed out that seismic waves resembled more with an explosion rather than an earthquake.

The speculation fueled due to the the boiling tensions between Iran and Israel in the Middle East countries. After the alleged killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, Iran rained about 400 missiles on Israel on October 1.

Geo-politics experts suggested that during all the escalating tension, Iran might consider achieving nuclear deterrence to counter Israel in the region as Iran has already been working on nuclear facilities. Iranian officials a day earlier also hinted at a “new grade of deterrence,” possibly nuclear.

A user named Adam shared a post — which crossed 1M views on X — saying that Speculation is there that Iran’s earthquake was the result of a nuclear test. “The Kavir desert, a large open desert area near Semnan, rarely has earthquakes,” he wrote.

However, the readers added context that “The earthquake occurred along the Mosha fault which is one of the most tectonically active regions of the Eastern Tehran metropolis. It experiences many minor earthquakes every year.”

Another post, gaining tens of thousands of views claimed that the earthquake in Iran fits the profile of a nuclear test explosion.

However, among all this speculation, some users posted counterarguments alleging that the tremors felt were from the natural earthquake.

Reports that denied the claim said that Iran sits on major fault lines, making it one of the most earthquake-prone countries. Therefore, natural seismic activity is not unusual.

The counterargument further claimed that no radioactive fallout or other signs typically associated with a nuclear test have been reported. Moreover, the seismic signature, while suggestive, isn’t definitive without further geological and possibly on-the-ground analysis.

A user on X said that the main difference between a natural earthquake and a nuclear test is in what type of waves they produce.

“Earthquake seismographs are dominated by strong “S” waves, while, Nuclear tests are dominated by “P” waves. I think the seismograph from Iran is dominated by S waves.” he wrote while sharing photos of seismic waves.

However, Iranian officials have yet to confirm the news whether it was a nuclear test.

Kashif Zia