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Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
The Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT) is the abbreviated name of the 1963 Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space and Under Water, which prohibited all test detonations of nuclear weapons except for those conducted underground. It is also abbreviated as the Limited Test Ban Treaty (LTBT) and Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (NTBT), though the latter may also refer to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), which succeeded the PTBT for ratifying parties. Negotiations initially focused on a comprehensive ban, but that was abandoned because of technical questions surrounding the detection of underground tests and Soviet concerns over the intrusiveness of proposed verification methods. The impetus for the test ban was provided by rising public anxiety over the magnitude of nuclear tests, particularly tests of new thermonuclear weapons (hydrogen bombs), and the resulting nuclear fallout. A test ban was also seen as a means of slowing nuclear prolifera ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arms Control
Arms control is a term for international restrictions upon the development, production, stockpiling, proliferation and usage of small arms, conventional weapons, and weapons of mass destruction. Arms control is typically exercised through the use of diplomacy which seeks to impose such limitations upon consenting participants through international treaties and agreements, although it may also comprise efforts by a nation or group of nations to enforce limitations upon a non-consenting country. Enactment Arms control treaties and agreements are often seen as a way to avoid costly arms races which could prove counter-productive to national aims and future peace. Some are used as ways to stop the spread of certain military technologies (such as nuclear weaponry or missile technology) in return for assurances to potential developers that they will not be victims of those technologies. Additionally, some arms control agreements are entered to limit the damage done by warfare, e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atomic Bomb
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb types release large quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first test of a fission ("atomic") bomb released an amount of energy approximately equal to . The first thermonuclear ("hydrogen") bomb test released energy approximately equal to . Nuclear bombs have had yields between 10 tons TNT (the W54) and 50 megatons for the Tsar Bomba (see TNT equivalent). A thermonuclear weapon weighing as little as can release energy equal to more than . A nuclear device no larger than a conventional bomb can devastate an entire city by blast, fire, and radiation. Since they are weapons of mass destruction, the proliferation of nuclear weapons is a focus of international relations policy. Nuclear weapons have been dep ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atomic Bombings Of Hiroshima And Nagasaki
The United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the only use of nuclear weapons in armed conflict so far. In the final year of World War II, the Allies prepared for a costly invasion of the Japanese mainland. This undertaking was preceded by a conventional and firebombing campaign that devastated 64 Japanese cities. The war in the European theatre concluded when Germany surrendered on 8 May 1945, and the Allies turned their full attention to the Pacific War. By July 1945, the Allies' Manhattan Project had produced two types of atomic bombs: "Fat Man", a plutonium implosion-type nuclear weapon; and "Little Boy", an enriched uranium gun-type fission weapon. The 509th Composite Group of the United States Army Air Forces was trained and equipped with the specialized Silverplate version of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Preparatory Commission For The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization
The Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization, or CTBTO Preparatory Commission, is an international organization based in Vienna, Austria, that is tasked with building up the verification regime of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO). The organization was established by the States Signatories to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) in 1996. Its main purpose is twofold: to promote the entry into force of the CTBT, and to establish a global verification regime in preparation for the Treaty's entry into force. As the CTBTO Preparatory Commission is an interim organization, it will be dissolved once the CTBT enters into force and will be replaced by the CTBTO, with all its assets being transferred to the CTBTO. This change will occur at the close of the first Conference of States Parties of the CTBT, which will take place when the Treaty has entered into force. For the Treaty to enter into force, the foll ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Atomic Heritage Foundation
The Atomic Heritage Foundation (AHF) is a nonprofit organization originally based in Washington, DC, dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the Manhattan Project and the Atomic Age and its legacy. Founded by Cynthia Kelly in 2002, the Foundation's stated goal is, "to provide the public not only a better understanding of the past but also a basis for addressing scientific, technical, political, social and ethical issues of the 21st century." AHF works with Congress, the Department of Energy, the National Park Service, state and local governments, nonprofit organizations and the former Manhattan Project communities to preserve and interpret historic sites and develop useful and accessible educational materials for veterans, teachers, and the general public. In June 2019, the Atomic Heritage Foundation and the National Museum of Nuclear Science & History signed an agreement that granted stewardship of the Atomic Heritage Foundation website and all of the AHF's physical co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daigo Fukuryū Maru
was a Japanese tuna fishing boat with a crew of 23 men which was contaminated by nuclear fallout from the United States Castle Bravo thermonuclear weapon test at Bikini Atoll on March 1, 1954. The crew suffered acute radiation syndrome (ARS) for a number of weeks after the Bravo test in March. All recovered except for Kuboyama Aikichi, the boat's chief radioman, who died on September 23, 1954, from complications of radiation sickness. Kuboyama is considered the first victim of the hydrogen bomb and of test shot Castle Bravo. Early days and final voyage Built in March 1947 and launched from Koza, Wakayama, the boat was originally named . It was a bonito boat and moored in Misaki Fishing Harbor, Kanagawa Prefecture. It was later remodeled into a tuna fishing boat. In 1953, it moved to Yaizu Port, Shizuoka Prefecture, with a new name, ''Daigo Fukuryū Maru'', translated as ''Lucky Dragon No. 5'' or the ''Fifth Lucky Dragon''. The ''Lucky Dragon No. 5'' took five ocean voya ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Utirik Atoll
Utirik Atoll or Utrik Atoll ( Marshallese: , ) is a coral atoll of 10 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands. Its total land area is only , but it encloses a lagoon with an area of . It is located approximately east of Ujae Atoll. The population of Utirik Atoll is 300-400 as of 2020. it is one of the northernmost Marshall Islands with permanent habitation. The larger islets are: * Utirik () * Aon () * Bikrak () * Pike () * Āllok () * Nalap () History Historical artifacts have been unearthed on the Atoll which date back to ca. 380 C.E., including tools likely used by early Micronesian peoples. Its first recorded sighting was by the Spanish navigator Álvaro de Saavedra on board the ship ''Florida'' on 29 December 1527. Together with Rongelap, Ailinginae and Toke atolls, they were charted as ''Islas de los Reyes'' (Islands of the Three Wise Kings in Spanish) due to the proximity of Epiphany. Utirik Atoll ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rongelap Atoll
Rongelap Atoll ( Marshallese: , ) is a coral atoll of 61 islands (or motus) in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ralik Chain of the Marshall Islands. Its total land area is . It encloses a lagoon with an area of . It is historically notable for its close proximity to US hydrogen bomb tests in 1954, and was particularly devastated by fallout from the Castle Bravo test. The population was forcibly removed from Rongelap following the test due to high radiation levels, and later studied due to their exposure to radiation. However, according to the most recent census in 2011 it has begun to recover with about eighty people living on the atoll. History The first sighting recorded by Europeans was by Spanish navigator Álvaro de Saavedra on 1 January 1528. Together with Utirik, Ailinginae and Toke atolls, they were charted as ''Islas de los Reyes'' (Islands of the Three Wise Kings in Spanish) due to the proximity of Epiphany. Fourteen years later ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
TNT Equivalent
TNT equivalent is a convention for expressing energy, typically used to describe the energy released in an explosion. The is a unit of energy defined by that convention to be , which is the approximate energy released in the detonation of a metric ton (1,000 kilograms) of TNT. In other words, for each gram of TNT exploded, (or 4184 joules) of energy is released. This convention intends to compare the destructiveness of an event with that of conventional explosive materials, of which TNT is a typical example, although other conventional explosives such as dynamite contain more energy. Kiloton and megaton The "kiloton (of TNT)" is a unit of energy equal to 4.184 terajoules (). The "megaton (of TNT)" is a unit of energy equal to 4.184 petajoules (). The kiloton and megaton of TNT have traditionally been used to describe the energy output, and hence the destructive power, of a nuclear weapon. The TNT equivalent appears in various nuclear weapon control treaties, and has ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operation Castle
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. It followed ''Operation Upshot–Knothole'' and preceded ''Operation Teapot''. 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. All the devices tested, which ranged in weight from , were built to be dropped from aircraft. However, ballistic casings, fins and fusing systems would have to be attached. 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 bombs detonated with over twice their predicted yields. One te ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bikini Atoll
Bikini Atoll ( or ; Marshallese: , , meaning "coconut place"), sometimes known as Eschscholtz Atoll between the 1800s and 1946 is a coral reef in the Marshall Islands consisting of 23 islands surrounding a central lagoon. After the Second World War, the atoll's inhabitants were forcibly relocated in 1946, after which the islands and lagoon were the site of 23 nuclear tests by the United States until 1958. The atoll is at the northern end of the Ralik Chain, approximately northwest of the capital Majuro. Three families were resettled on Bikini island in 1970, totaling about 100 residents, but scientists found dangerously high levels of strontium-90 in well water in May 1977, and the residents were carrying abnormally high concentrations of caesium-137 in their bodies. They were evacuated again in 1980. The atoll is occasionally visited today by divers and a few scientists, and is occupied by a handful of caretakers. Etymology The island's English name is derived f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Castle Bravo
Castle Bravo was the first in a series of high-yield thermonuclear weapon design tests conducted by the United States at Bikini Atoll, Marshall Islands, as part of '' Operation Castle''. Detonated on March 1, 1954, the device was the most powerful nuclear device detonated by the United States and its first lithium deuteride fueled thermonuclear weapon. Castle Bravo's yield was , 2.5 times the predicted , due to unforeseen additional reactions involving lithium-7, which led to the unexpected radioactive contamination of areas to the east of Bikini Atoll. At the time, it was the most powerful artificial explosion in history. Fallout, the heaviest of which was in the form of pulverized surface coral from the detonation, fell on residents of Rongelap and Utirik atolls, while the more particulate and gaseous fallout spread around the world. The inhabitants of the islands were not evacuated until three days later and suffered radiation sickness. Twenty-three crew members of the Ja ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
