OPERATION CROSSROADS. TESTS ABLE AND BAKER
Abstract
The purpose of the inclusion of concrete vessels in the target array was primarily to determine the effects of atomic bomb phenomena on land based concrete structures. A considerable fund of information has been provided by studies of structures at Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Three concrete vessels were selected: the ARDC-13, a 2800 ton drydock; the YOG-83, a gasoline barge; and the YO-160, a fuel oil barge. The atomic bombs employed at Bikini were the Nagasaki type. It has been reported that the test A bomb had an estimated blast equivalent of 20,000 tons of TNT at ground level over smooth ground. It is understood that no precise estimate has been made of the underwater effects of the test B bomb, but that the data available indicate an equivalent of 17,000 + or - 3000 tons of TNT. Other units of the task force secured data on pressures, temperatures, rediological effects, etc., a portion of which is restated later in this section to facilitate the reference. All three concrete craft sustained damage or were made uninhabitable by both Able and Baker explosions. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1946
- Accession Number
- AD0473905