Operation Crossroads. A Comparison of the Effects of Test Able Atomic Bomb Ionizing Radiation and X-Rays on Seeds of Barley, Wheat and Oats

Abstract

This report discusses an investigation on the biological effects of atomic bomb ionizing radiation. A large variety of biological material including animals, seeds, grain insects, bacteria, fungi, etc., were distributed on twenty-two target ships prior to the detonation of the Test ABLE bomb July 1st 1946. Barley seeds were selected as one of the test objects because of their excellent fitness for determining the effects of irradiation on mutation frequency. Young and old seeds were included in order to study the effect of age on sensitivity to irradiation. Seeds of Durum (tetraploid), common wheat (hexaploid), and common oats (hexaploid) were included in the tests in order to have results from polyploid plants for comparison with information obtained from the non-polyploid barley.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 1947
Accession Number
AD0473898

Entities

People

  • Luther Smith

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Agriculture
  • Bombs
  • Chromosomes
  • Explosions
  • Frequency
  • Genes
  • Genetics
  • Germination
  • Government Procurement
  • Governments
  • Ionizing Radiation
  • Lethal Dosage
  • Materials
  • Mutations
  • National Security
  • Nuclear Bombs
  • Plants
  • Radiation
  • Wheat
  • X Rays

Readers

  • Materials Science and Engineering.
  • Molecular and genetic basis of cancer.
  • Nuclear and Radiation Engineering.