Rocket men: The team building North Korea's nuclear missile

Kim has elevated science as an ideal in the regime's propaganda and put his fondness for scientists and engineers on prominent display across N Korea

When the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un celebrated the launch of a powerful new missile last month, he was surrounded by a group of top scientists and officials.

State media did not identify them, but they have all been seen with Kim before.

These men — known by nicknames such as the “nuclear duo” and the “missile quartet” — have built an intercontinental ballistic missile that appears capable of hitting any city in the United States, an extraordinary scientific achievement for the world’s most isolated country.

At only 33, Kim has been ruthless about consolidating power, executing scores of senior officials, including his