© 2026

For assistance accessing the Online Public File for KAXE or KBXE, please contact: Steve Neu, IT Engineer, at 800-662-5799.
Donate
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Why has China doubled its nuclear capacity in the last decade?

NPR | By Emily Feng,
Hannah Bloch, Daniel Ofman
Published May 10, 2026 at 4:04 PM CDT

For decades, China pared back its nuclear weapons program and kept its arsenal to a minimum. Now, new satellite images show China is rapidly expanding its nuclear arsenal and production sites. Why?

Copyright 2026 NPR
Emily Feng
Emily Feng is NPR's Beijing correspondent.
See stories by Emily Feng
Hannah Bloch
Hannah Bloch is lead digital editor on NPR's international desk, overseeing the work of NPR correspondents and freelance journalists around the world.
See stories by Hannah Bloch
Daniel Ofman
Creative Commons License
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of any other photos and graphics.