North Korea appear to have inadvertently broadcast an image of former leader Kim Jong-il inspecting one of the country's first ever atomic bombs.

A 30-minute bulletin shown on state TV from December 12, at a conference in Pyongyang, showed a portrait in the background which appeared to be of Jong-il and the explosive device.

The photograph is visible only briefly as the camera sets the scene of the conference, which was attended by North Korea Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un, the son of the late former leader pictured.

North Korea appear to have inadvertently revealed an image of former leader Kim Jong-il inspecting one of the country's first ever atomic bombs

The portrait in the background appeared to be of Kim Jong-il and the explosive device

If real, it would have been taken sometime between 2006-2009 when the secretive regime carried out nuclear tests.

Hanging among other pictures of weaponry, experts have been debating whether the image resembles an atomic bomb or not.

Because of the fleeting appearance from distance, experts have yet to say definitively if the device is an atomic bomb but they do acknowledge similarities between recent photographs of Kim Jong-un inspecting what North Korea claim to be their first hydrogen bomb.

The picture appears to show Kim Jong-il, who died six years ago, inspecting a large globe-like object while in the company of senior military officials.

A 30-minute bulletin shown on state TV from December 12 at a conference in Pyongyang showed a portrait in the background which appeared to be of Jong-il and the explosive device

No public images are available of the late Kim, who was known in North Korea as the 'Shining Star', looking at a nuclear weapon but it could have been faked with computer software.

The image was first spotted by China-based Twitter user @xutianran on December 12, who said: 'Is this an A-bomb or sth [something]?', a question which had fellow North Korea watchers trying to make a positive identification.

While US arms control expert Jeffrey Lewis simply tweeted: 'This is the photo we're all ogling.'

The photograph is visible only briefly as the camera sets the scene of the conference, which was attended by North Korea Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un, the son of the late former leader pictured

The picture appears to show Kim Jong-il (left), who died six years ago, inspecting a large globe-like object while in the company of senior military officials. If real, it would have been taken sometime between 2006-2009 when the secretive regime carried out nuclear tests

There are some suggestion the globe is a mock-up, as there are no records of a scientist being able to miniaturise a nuclear device at that time.

Despite this, it is not the first time North Korea has 'accidentally' gave away surprising information in the background of news reports.

The country revealed plans for a previously unknown ballistic missile types when they were mistakenly filmed on a wall chart during coverage of a visit by Kim Jong-un.