Two people have been killed and four injured after a rocket engine exploded during a test in northern Arkhangelsk region of Russia.

The State-owned TASS news agency said a brief rise in radiation was recorded in the nearby city of Severodvinsk after the explosion.

It is the second explosion at a Russian military installation this week after a fire at an ammunition depot in Siberia caught fire sending shrapnel into the air.

This visible shock wave provides an indication of the power of explosions at #Russia munitions depot near Kamenka, Siberia https://t.co/yedJmZAZBH pic.twitter.com/K5AXCeaSRT

— Joseph Dempsey (@JosephHDempsey) August 5, 2019

Quoting the Russian ministry of defence, the RIA news agency said today’s explosion occurred during testing on a liquid propulsion system that caught fire.

"As a result of the accident, six representatives of the ministry of defence and the developer received injuries of varying severity," the ministry said.

"Two specialists died from their wounds."

RIA also quoted the ministry as saying no harmful substances were released into the atmosphere and radiation levels were normal.

However, Ksenia Yudina, a spokeswoman for the city authorities in Severodvinsk, was quoted by TASS as saying: “A short-term rise in background radiation was recorded at around noon in Severodvinsk.”

The region’s governor said there was no need to evacuate residents, RIA said.