Intl. Notebook

August 11 2024

EYE IN THE SKY

It sees all and kills all.

This image ranks as one of the more unusual shots of a nuclear explosion. It shows the high altitude atmospheric test codenamed Orange, which was part of a two-test pairing codenamed Operation Newsreel, which was in turn part of the broad series codenamed Operation Hardtack. These warhawks and their codenames, right? The test took place today in 1958 and was a 3.8 megaton blast lifted to an altitude of approximately twenty-seven miles above Johnston Atoll in the North Pacific Ocean by a Redstone Missile. The result was among the first well-studied nuclear electromagnetic pulses ever produced. You see a wider shot of the test below.

Johnston Atoll, nukes

Intl. Notebook

July 9 2021

UNDER A BLOOD RED SKY

Color, form, and function in the nuclear age.

This photo looks like a shot of the northern lights, but it’s actually an image of the Starfish Prime nuclear test, which was conducted today in 1962 as part of the test series codenamed Operation Dominic. The photo was shot from a high flying airplane, which just goes to show that at a sufficient distance anything can look beautiful. You can just see the wing of the aircraft at the lower right of the shot. This test was unique in U.S. history up to that point because the warhead was mounted on the nose of a Thor rocket launched from Johnston Atoll, and the subsequent suborbital nuclear blast occurred two-hundred fifty miles above the Pacific Ocean. People from Hawaii to New Zealand saw the sky turn red. The electromagnetic pulse from the blast knocked out electrical service, telephones, streetlights, set off burglar alarms as far as a thousand miles away, and damaged satellites.

The test alarmed many, and had been protested in advance in various cities around the world, yet those protests achieved nothing. As the decades have worn on treaties have been signed and broken, hopes for abandoning these weapons raised and dashed, even as they’ve been steadily upgraded. Today there are nukes that make Starfish Prime look like a bottle rocket, including hypersonic missiles developed by both the U.S. and Russia that fly at up to 15,000 mph, which is too fast to be shot down or even reliably detected due to the incredible speed creating a plasma cloud that baffles radar. Of course everyone knows that there’s no way to win a nuclear exchange, and the only outcome of even a half dozen nuclear blasts would be the destruction of civilization in its current form, yet the race to build planet killers goes on because of the immense profits involved. Humans are truly a mad species.

Johnston Atoll, nukes

Intl. Notebook

October 18 2020

FIRE SALE

Private island available. Great views. No services, no electricity, no refunds.

Above, an alternate view of the Dominic Chama nuclear test conducted on Johnston Atoll, aka Kalama Atoll, today in 1962. You can see the other photo here. In 2005 the place was put up for auction by the U.S. government as a potential vacation getaway or possible eco-tourism hub. We’re not sure how much eco there was, considering the place was not only nuked multiple times, but used for biological weapons testing and Agent Orange storage, but it didn’t matter because there were no takers, and the offer was withdrawn. It might still be possible to buy it, though, if you have any connections in the U.S. State Department. We bet your resort would get glowing reviews.

Johnston Atoll, Kalama Atoll, nukes

Intl. Notebook

October 18 2016

BAD MAMA CHAMA

She's poetry in motion, a terrible sight to see.

Above is a shot of the nuclear detonation code-named Chama, which was part of Operation Dominic, a series of tests conducted in the South Pacific on remote Johnston Atoll, aka Kalama Atoll, with this blast occurring today in 1962. Have you been paying attention to what’s going on with nuclear weapons and nuclear confrontation today? The Cold War never ended, and the recent tensions between the U.S. and Russia, centered around a looming proxy war in Syria, has brought the possibility of nuclear conflict closer than it has been at any time since the Cuban Missile Crisis. That isn’t our analysis—that’s the analysis of some of the foremost political historians and diplomacy experts in the world. Some Tuesday cheer for you.

Johnston Atoll, Kalama Atoll, nukes

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HISTORY REWIND

The headlines that mattered yesteryear.

October 13

1970—Angela Davis Arrested

After two months of evading police and federal authorities, Angela Davis is arrested in New York City by the FBI. She had been sought in connection with a kidnapping and murder because one of the guns used in the crime had been bought under her name. But after a trial a jury agreed that owning the weapon did not automatically make her complicit in the crimes.

October 12

1978—Sid Vicious Arrested for Murder

Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious is arrested on suspicion of murder after the body of his girlfriend Nancy Spungen is found in their room at New York City’s Chelsea Hotel. Vicious and Spungen had a famously stormy relationship, but Vicious proclaims he is innocent. He is released on bail and dies of a heroin overdose before a trial takes place.

October 12

1979—Adams Publishes First Hitchhiker's Book

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the first of five books in a series, is published by Douglas Adams. The novels follow on the heels of the tremendously successful British television series of the same name.

October 11

1976—China Coup Thwarted

The new head of the Chinese Communist Party, Hua Goufeng, snuffs out a coup led by Chairman Mao’s widow Jiang Qing and three other party members. They become known as the Gang of Four, and are tried, found guilty of treason, and receive death sentences that are later commuted to lengthy prison terms.

October 11

1987—Loch Ness Expedition Ends

A sonar exploration of Scotland’s Loch Ness, called Operation Deepscan, ends after a week without finding evidence that the legendary Loch Ness Monster exists. While the flotilla of boats had picked up three sonar contacts indicating something large in the waters, these are considered to be detections of salmon schools or possibly seals.

October 10

1971—London Bridge Goes Up

After being sold, dismantled and moved to the United States, London Bridge reopens in the resort town of Lake Havasu City, Arizona.

October 10

1975—Burton and Taylor Marry Again

British actor Richard Burton and American screen star Elizabeth Taylor secretly remarry sixteen months after their divorce, then jet away to a second honeymoon in Chobe Game Park in Botswana.