WASHINGTON — A senior Biden administration official says that U.S. spy satellites detected an explosion at the Kakhovka dam simply earlier than it collapsed, however American analysts nonetheless have no idea who induced the dam’s destruction or how precisely it occurred.

The official stated that satellites outfitted with infrared sensors detected a warmth signature in keeping with a serious explosion simply earlier than the dam collapsed, unleashing big floodwaters downstream.

American intelligence analysts suspect that Russia was behind the dam’s destruction, the senior administration official stated, talking on the situation of anonymity to debate operational particulars. But he added that U.S. spy companies nonetheless didn’t have any strong proof about who was accountable.

Engineering and munitions consultants have stated a deliberate explosion contained in the Kakhovka dam, which is managed by Russia, most probably induced its collapse on Tuesday. They added that structural failure or an assault from outdoors the dam had been potential however much less believable explanations.

The administration official didn’t rule out the chance that prior harm to the dam or mounting water stress may need contributed to the collapse, however American officers consider the explosion, whether or not deliberate or unintended, was the most probably set off.

Experts had cautioned earlier this week that the obtainable proof was very restricted, however they stated {that a} blast in an enclosed area, with all of its power utilized in opposition to the construction round it, would do probably the most harm. Even then, they stated, it could require a whole lot of kilos of explosives, a minimum of, to breach the dam.

An exterior detonation by a bomb or missile would exert solely a fraction of its drive in opposition to the dam, and would require an explosive many occasions bigger to realize the same impact.