Castle Yankee: Difference between revisions
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It was detonated on May 5, 1954, at [[Bikini Atoll]] of the [[Marshall Islands]], on a barge moored in the middle of the crater from the [[Castle Union]] test. |
It was detonated on May 5, 1954, at [[Bikini Atoll]] of the [[Marshall Islands]], on a barge moored in the middle of the crater from the [[Castle Union]] test. |
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Although it |
Although it had been predicted to produce a yield of 6 to 10 [[TNT equivalent|megatons]], it actually produced a yield of 13.5 megatons, the second-largest ever yield in a U.S. fusion weapon test. Like the [[Ivy Mike]], Bravo and Romeo tests, a large percentage of the yield was produced by fast [[nuclear fission|fission]] of the natural [[uranium]] "tamper"; 7 megatons of the yield were from this source. The other 6.5 megatons were from fusion reactions; this increase was due to the different fusion fuel. This fusion yield was the largest to date, and set a record that stood for several years. |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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Revision as of 14:03, 8 July 2013
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| Castle Yankee | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Information | |
| Country | United States |
| Test series | Operation Castle |
| Test site | Bikini Atoll |
| Date | May 5, 1954 |
| Test type | Atmospheric |
| Yield | 13.5 Mt |
Castle Yankee was the code name given to one of the tests in the Operation Castle series of American tests of thermonuclear bombs.
Jughead
Yankee was originally intended to be a test of a simplified and lightened bomb version (the TX-16, or "emergency capability" EC-16) of the large and complex cryogenic device (the first successful multi-stage fusion device) tested in Ivy Mike. A small number of EC-16s were produced on an emergency basis to provide a stop-gap thermonuclear weapon capability in response to the Russian nuclear weapons program.
The test device, code-named "Jughead", had been prepared as a backup in case the non-cryogenic "Shrimp" fusion device (first tested in Castle Bravo) failed to work. The test of "Jughead" was cancelled when the Bravo device was successful, and the few EC-16s which were actually built were withdrawn and dismantled.
Runt II
Jughead was replaced in the Yankee test by the so-called "Runt II" device (the TX-24 bomb, initially the "emergency capability" EC-24), a modified form of the "Runt" device (the TX-17/EC-17) tested in Castle Romeo. Externally identical, the principal difference between them was in the fuel for the fusion stage. While Runt used natural lithium (with 7.5% of the Lithium-6 isotope), Runt II used the same partially enriched lithium (approximately 40% Lithium-6) as the "Shrimp" device tested in Bravo.
It was detonated on May 5, 1954, at Bikini Atoll of the Marshall Islands, on a barge moored in the middle of the crater from the Castle Union test.
Although it had been predicted to produce a yield of 6 to 10 megatons, it actually produced a yield of 13.5 megatons, the second-largest ever yield in a U.S. fusion weapon test. Like the Ivy Mike, Bravo and Romeo tests, a large percentage of the yield was produced by fast fission of the natural uranium "tamper"; 7 megatons of the yield were from this source. The other 6.5 megatons were from fusion reactions; this increase was due to the different fusion fuel. This fusion yield was the largest to date, and set a record that stood for several years.
External links
- The short film Operation Castle Commanders Report (1954) is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive.
- The short film Military Effects Studies Operation Castle (1954) is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive.
- The short film Nuclear Test Film - Operation Castle (1954) is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive.
- Operation Castle
References
- Chuck Hansen, U. S. Nuclear Weapons: The Secret History (Arlington: AeroFax, 1988)