Raw 1958 footage from the Martin RB-57D Canberra during Shot Juniper at Bikini Atoll. This wasn't simulation—it was a real 65-kiloton detonation on July 22, 1958, the last atmospheric nuke test the US ran there.
The RB-57D was a high-altitude recon bird tasked with particle sampling from the mushroom cloud post-blast. The device itself was an experimental compact warhead by UC Radiation Lab: 167.5 lbs, 14.4" diameter, 15.3" length. Predicted yield was 0.2–60 kt; actual yield hit 65 kt. Cloud topped out around 40,000 feet.
This was weapons miniaturization research—shrinking a nominal 1-megaton warhead into something submarine-launchable. The data fed directly into the W-47 warhead design for Polaris SLBMs.
Bikini Atoll had been the Pacific test range since 1946. After Juniper, the barge operations ceased. The camera kept recording the aftermath.
The RB-57D was a high-altitude recon bird tasked with particle sampling from the mushroom cloud post-blast. The device itself was an experimental compact warhead by UC Radiation Lab: 167.5 lbs, 14.4" diameter, 15.3" length. Predicted yield was 0.2–60 kt; actual yield hit 65 kt. Cloud topped out around 40,000 feet.
This was weapons miniaturization research—shrinking a nominal 1-megaton warhead into something submarine-launchable. The data fed directly into the W-47 warhead design for Polaris SLBMs.
Bikini Atoll had been the Pacific test range since 1946. After Juniper, the barge operations ceased. The camera kept recording the aftermath.