NORTH Korea appears to be preparing for another missile test, according to a US Defense official.

According to CNN, the official said transporter vehicles carrying ballistic missile launching equipment were seen arriving in Kusong, North Korea on Friday.

When such equipment is seen it means a launch could occur within six days, the official said. This could coincide with the July 27 North Korean Holiday, which celebrates the armistice that ended the North Korean war.

It’s understood the rogue nation may be preparing for another intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) or intermediate range missile test.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un claimed the country had successfully tested its first ICBM last month. US officials also confirmed the ballistic missile flew longer than any North Korean missile test conducted by the rogue regime to date. The rocket landed in the Sea of Japan.

The ICBM flew for 37 minutes and reached a height of 2414km, leading missile experts to conclude it could have reached a target 6437km away, putting the US state of Alaska in its crosshairs.

MISSILE THREAT: North Korea launches first ICBM

“The threat is much more immediate now,” National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster told reporters prior to the launch. “So it’s clear we can’t repeat the same failed approach of the past.”

He added: “So the President has directed us not to do that, and to prepare a range of options — including a military option, which nobody wants to take, right?”

Vice Adm. James Syring, the director of the Missile Defence Agency, previously said, if it didn’t already exist, it would only be a matter of time until North Korea was able to attack the US.

“We have to assume that the capability exists today to attack the United States,” he said.

MILITARY TENSIONS: How nuclear weapons work

US President Donald Trump mocked the North Korean leader following the latest launch, asking: “Does this guy have anything better to do with his life?”

He also suggested America’s allies in the region — Japan and South Korea — will put pressure on the North Korean regime to rein in its nuclear ambitions.

“Hard to believe that South Korea..... and Japan will put up with this much longer. Perhaps China will put a heavy move on North Korea and end this nonsense once and for all!”

US TO TEST ANTI-MISSILE SYSTEM IN ALASKA

Meanwhile, the US military is preparing to conduct another test of a missile-intercept system in Alaska, the Pentagon said Monday, amid continued tensions with North Korea over its ballistic missile program.

Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis said a routine test of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system had been scheduled to go ahead “soon.” “These tests are done as a routine measure to make sure that the system is ready,” he said.

“They are scheduled well in advance of any other real world geopolitical events going on.” A notice to mariners put out by the US Coast Guard said the test could occur as soon as Saturday.

THAAD is designed to intercept and destroy short-, medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles during their final phase of flight.

THAAD is not designed to stop an ICBM — that job is left primarily to the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) interceptor system.

Missile Defense Agency Director Lieutenant General Sam Greaves said in a statement the test would occur at the Pacific Spaceport Complex, Alaska.

“Due to the need to safeguard critical defense information, the (Defense) Department will not provide test details in advance beyond the required safety notifications,” he said.

The military earlier this month successfully tested THAAD against an intermediate-range target, the first successful trial against that type of missile.