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Operation Upshot-Knothole GRABLE, 1953

Historic image of the M65 Atomic Cannon being tested for the first time, on May 25th 1953, at the Nevada Test Site. This cannon fired 280mm shells. Hundred of high-ranking military officers and members of Congress were present for the test. Although never used, and not very practical, the cannon was not retired until 1963. Upshot-Knothole Grable was a nuclear weapons test conducted by the United States as part of Operation Upshot-Knothole. Detonation of the associated nuclear weapon occurred 19 seconds after its deployment at 8:30am PDT (1530 UTC) on May 25, 1953, in Area 5 of the Nevada Test Site. The codename Grable was chosen because the letter Grable is phonetic for G, as in "gun", since the warhead was a gun-type fission weapon. As a shell, or artillery-fired atomic projectile (AFAP), the device was the first of its kind. The test remains the only nuclear artillery shell ever actually fired in the U.S. nuclear weapons test program.

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Title:

Operation Upshot-Knothole GRABLE, 1953

Caption:

Historic image of the M65 Atomic Cannon being tested for the first time, on May 25th 1953, at the Nevada Test Site. This cannon fired 280mm shells. Hundred of high-ranking military officers and members of Congress were present for the test. Although never used, and not very practical, the cannon was not retired until 1963. Upshot-Knothole Grable was a nuclear weapons test conducted by the United States as part of Operation Upshot-Knothole. Detonation of the associated nuclear weapon occurred 19 seconds after its deployment at 8:30am PDT (1530 UTC) on May 25, 1953, in Area 5 of the Nevada Test Site. The codename Grable was chosen because the letter Grable is phonetic for G, as in "gun", since the warhead was a gun-type fission weapon. As a shell, or artillery-fired atomic projectile (AFAP), the device was the first of its kind. The test remains the only nuclear artillery shell ever actually fired in the U.S. nuclear weapons test program.

Credit:

Album / Science Source

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Image size:

3807 x 3013 px | 32.8 MB

Print size:

32.2 x 25.5 cm | 12.7 x 10.0 in (300 dpi)

Keywords:

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