alb3819964

Operation Castle ROMEO, 1956

Romeo was an 11 megaton shot fired from a barge near Bikini Atoll on March 26, 1954. Operation Castle was a United States series of high-yield (high-energy) nuclear tests by Joint Task Force 7 (JTF-7) at Bikini Atoll beginning in March 1954. Conducted as a joint venture between the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and the Department of Defense (DoD), the ultimate objective of the operation was to test designs for an aircraft-deliverable thermonuclear weapon. Operation Castle was considered by government officials to be a success as it proved the feasibility of deployable "dry" fuel designs for thermonuclear weapons. There were technical difficulties with some of the tests: one device had a yield much lower than predicted (a "fizzle"), while two other devices detonated with over twice their predicted yields. One test in particular, Castle Bravo, resulted in extensive radiological contamination of nearby islands (including inhabitants and U.S. soldiers stationed there). Public reaction to the tests and an awareness of the long-range effects of nuclear fallout has been attributed as being part of the motivation for the Partial Test Ban Treaty of 1963.

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Title:

Operation Castle ROMEO, 1956

Caption:

Romeo was an 11 megaton shot fired from a barge near Bikini Atoll on March 26, 1954. Operation Castle was a United States series of high-yield (high-energy) nuclear tests by Joint Task Force 7 (JTF-7) at Bikini Atoll beginning in March 1954. Conducted as a joint venture between the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and the Department of Defense (DoD), the ultimate objective of the operation was to test designs for an aircraft-deliverable thermonuclear weapon. Operation Castle was considered by government officials to be a success as it proved the feasibility of deployable "dry" fuel designs for thermonuclear weapons. There were technical difficulties with some of the tests: one device had a yield much lower than predicted (a "fizzle"), while two other devices detonated with over twice their predicted yields. One test in particular, Castle Bravo, resulted in extensive radiological contamination of nearby islands (including inhabitants and U.S. soldiers stationed there). Public reaction to the tests and an awareness of the long-range effects of nuclear fallout has been attributed as being part of the motivation for the Partial Test Ban Treaty of 1963.

Credit:

Album / DOE/Science Source

Releases:

Model: No - Property: No
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Image size:

4200 x 2881 px | 34.6 MB

Print size:

35.6 x 24.4 cm | 14.0 x 9.6 in (300 dpi)

Keywords:

1956 • 20 XX TWENTIETH CENTURY • 20TH CENTURY • A-BOMB • AMERICA • AMERICAN • ATOM BOMB • ATOMIC BOMB RESEARCH • ATOMIC BOMB TEST • ATOMIC BOMB • ATOMIC DEVICE • ATOMIC RESEARCH • ATOMIC TESTING • ATOMIC WEAPON • BIKINI ATOLL • BLAST • BLASTING • CASTLE DIABLO • CELEBRITY • DETONATE • DETONATING • DETONATION • EVENT • EXPLODING • EXPLOSION • FAMOUS • HISTORIC • HISTORICAL • HISTORY • HUNDRED YEARS WAR • HYDROGEN BOMB TEST • HYDROGEN BOMB • HYDROGEN DEVICE • HYDROGEN WEAPON • IMPORTANT • MARCH 26 • MARCH 26TH • MARSHALL ISLANDS • MUSHROOM CLOUD • NOTABLE • NUCLEAR BOMB RESEARCH • NUCLEAR BOMB TEST • NUCLEAR BOMB • NUCLEAR DEVICE • NUCLEAR TESTING • NUCLEAR WEAPON • OCEAN, PACIFIC • OPERATION CASTLE ROMEO • OPERATION CASTLE • PACIFIC OCEAN • PACIFIC PROVING GROUNDS • RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT • RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT • RESEARCH • SCIENCE • SIEGE • SITE • TECHNOLOGICAL • TECHNOLOGY • THERMONUCLEAR BOMB TEST • THERMONUCLEAR BOMB • THERMONUCLEAR DEVICE • THERMONUCLEAR RESEARCH • THERMONUCLEAR WEAPON • TWENTIETH CENTURY • UNITED STATES • US • USA • WAR • WEAPON OF MASS DESTRUCTION • WEAPON • WEAPONARY • WELL-KNOWN • WMD