The Bomb Test Programs1946 - 1963

Art work by Grant Powell

Between 16 July 1945 and 23 September 1992 the United States of America conducted (by official count) 1054 nuclear tests, and two nuclear attacks. Whatare the reasons and results?

List of US atmospheric Bomb tests

Operation Year Location #

Crossroads 1946 Bikini Atoll 2

Sandstone 1948 Enewetak Atoll 3

Ranger 1951 Nevada Test Site 5

Greenhouse 1951 Enewetak Atoll 4

Buster-Jangle 1951 Nevada Test Site 7

Tumbler-Snapper 1951 Nevada Test Site 7

Ivy 1952 Enewetak Atoll 2

Upshot-Knothole 1953 Nevada Test Site 11

Castle 1954Bikini Atoll

Enewetak Atoll6

Teapot 1955 Nevada Test Site 14

Wigwam 1955 Pacific Ocean 1

Pacific Atolls and Nevada desert areas

Project 56 1955 Nevada Test Site 4

Redwing 1956Bikini AtollEnewetak Atoll

17

Plumbbob 1957 Nevada Test Site 30

Project 58 1957 Nevada Test Site 2

Project 58 A 1958 Nevada Test Site 2

Hardtack I 1958Bikini AtollEnewetak AtollJohnston Island

35

Argus 1958 South Atlantic 3

Hardtack II 1958 Nevada Test Site 37

Nougat1961-1962

Nevada Test Site 32

Dominic(with Fishbowl)

1962Christmas IslandJohnston IslandCentral Pacific

36

Storax(with Sunbeam and Roller Coaster)

1962-1963

Nevada Test SiteNellis Air Force Range

56

316 tests until October 10, 1963; Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

Preparation of PopulationTest program needed psychological preparation of populationdown-playing internal impact while up-playing external enemy

familiarizing population and society through media & propaganda

Play-Down of Dangers Presenting Nukes just as “bigger conventional” weapons Suggesting a “Communist take over” as bigger evil Belittling the threat and dangers of radiation exposure Declaring potential damage as manageable. Rapid Growth of “Fear Industry”!

In movies, shelters, and protection devices

Reporter Burchett wrote: "In Hiroshima, thirty days after the first atomic bomb destroyed the city and shook the world, people are still dying, mysteriously and horribly—people who were uninjured in the cataclysm from an unknown something which I can only describe as the atomic plague.“

He continued, tapping out the words that still haunt to this day: "Hiroshima does not look like a bombed city. It looks as if a monster steamroller has passed over it and squashed it out of existence.“

Burchett's article, headlined THE ATOMIC PLAGUE, was published on September 5, 1945 in the London Daily Express. The story caused a worldwide sensation, and was a public relations fiasco for the U.S. military. The official U.S. narrative of the atomic bombings downplayed civilian casualties and categorically dismissed as "Japanese propaganda" reports of the deadly lingering effects of radiation.

No way in stopping Hollywood!

Just big conventional weapons

The Commies are coming, the Commies are coming!

The Red Nightmare:Federally funded propaganda film. The tale of an ordinary American town and its life as a Communist satellite, with everyone becoming emotionless automations.

Invasion, USA is the key cold war 'scare' picture. Unlike pacifist weepies such as Arch Oboler's Five, this show depicts a Soviet Union so aggressive, SenatorJoe McCarthy wouldn't recognize it.

The Fear Factor

Comic Book Industry

Presenting violence and horror with “the good guys” beating “the bad guys”

The American Hero at the End of Times

No doubt or criticism was voiced in media, film, and popular literature towards arms race, weapons development and testing!

Duck and Cover

Training to be prepared and to accept the “unavoidable”!

The public warning system

Personal Preparation

Preparation and Shelter

Public shelter and warning system was installedPurchasing private “atomic bunker” system became big business. Business based on fear and false information.

Shelter Guide

By 1960, The Office of Civil and Defense Mobilization, estimated that a million families had constructed their own private bomb shelters. Shelters ranged in price from $1,795-$3,895, and of course many came in kits that make assembly much easier. Advertisements were found in magazines throughout the country. Many companies were capitalizing on Americans fear. Life Magazine in 1955, included a feature ad for a H-Bomb Hideaway, and the sale price was only $3000. Bob Rutske, a Michigan Sheriff at the time, remarked that "To build a home today without a shelter, would be like leaving out a bathroom twenty years ago." The number of shelters that were built in that era, show how well propaganda had penetrated the American mind.

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Back in business?

But there were limits …

To realistic movies and or satire was suppressed or forbiddento avoid the generation of criticism and/or panic reactions.

Nukes as business motivatorMarch 1, 1954 Hydrogen Bomb test on Bikini Atoll;Louis Réard, thought his daring new swimsuit would have an impact comparable to the impact of the bomb.

Fall-Out Pattern

Crater

Nukes became normal part of everybody’s life

But accidents occurred and criticism grew slowly but surely!