Little Feller (nuclear tests)
Encyclopedia
Little Feller II and Little Feller I were code names for a set of nuclear tests
undertaken by the United States
at the Nevada Test Site
on July 7 and July 17, 1962 as part of Operation Sunbeam
. They were both tests of stockpiled W54
warheads, the smallest nuclear warheads ever produced by the United States, used in both the Davy Crockett warhead
and the Special Atomic Demolition Munition
.
In Little Feller II (July 7), the warhead was suspended only three feet above the ground and had a yield equivalent to only 22 tons of TNT. In Little Feller I (July 17), the warhead was launched as a Davy Crockett device from a stationary 155 millimeter launcher and set to detonate between 20 and 40 feet above the ground around 1.7 miles from the launch point, with a yield of 18 tons. This test was performed in conjunction with Operation Ivy Flats, a simulated military environment, and was observed by Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy
and presidential adviser General Maxwell D. Taylor
.
Little Feller I has the additional distinction of being the last atmospheric nuclear detonation conducted by the United States of America. That is, although testing continued for many years thereafter, all further tests were conducted underground, in accordance with the Partial Test Ban Treaty
. An additional footnote is Operation Roller Coaster
. Although this later series of tests involved no true nuclear detonation, they did disperse radioactive material using conventional explosives and thus may alternatively be considered the last aboveground nuclear test.
Nuclear testing
Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine the effectiveness, yield and explosive capability of nuclear weapons. Throughout the twentieth century, most nations that have developed nuclear weapons have tested them...
undertaken by the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
at the Nevada Test Site
Nevada Test Site
The Nevada National Security Site , previously the Nevada Test Site , is a United States Department of Energy reservation located in southeastern Nye County, Nevada, about northwest of the city of Las Vegas...
on July 7 and July 17, 1962 as part of Operation Sunbeam
Operation Sunbeam
Operation Sunbeam was a series of four nuclear tests conducted at the United States of America's Nevada Test Site in 1962. Operation Sunbeam tested a number of small, "tactical" nuclear warheads...
. They were both tests of stockpiled W54
W54
The W54 was the smallest nuclear warhead deployed by the United States. It was a very compact implosion-type nuclear weapon design, designed for tactical use and had a very low yield for a nuclear weapon.- Development :...
warheads, the smallest nuclear warheads ever produced by the United States, used in both the Davy Crockett warhead
Davy Crockett (nuclear device)
The M-28 or M-29 Davy Crockett Weapon System was a tactical nuclear recoilless gun for firing the M388 nuclear projectile that was deployed by the United States during the Cold War...
and the Special Atomic Demolition Munition
Special Atomic Demolition Munition
The Special Atomic Demolition Munition was a family of man-portable nuclear weapons fielded by the US military in the 1960s, but never used in actual combat. The US Army planned to use the weapons in Europe in the event of a Soviet invasion...
.
In Little Feller II (July 7), the warhead was suspended only three feet above the ground and had a yield equivalent to only 22 tons of TNT. In Little Feller I (July 17), the warhead was launched as a Davy Crockett device from a stationary 155 millimeter launcher and set to detonate between 20 and 40 feet above the ground around 1.7 miles from the launch point, with a yield of 18 tons. This test was performed in conjunction with Operation Ivy Flats, a simulated military environment, and was observed by Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy
Robert F. Kennedy
Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy , also referred to by his initials RFK, was an American politician, a Democratic senator from New York, and a noted civil rights activist. An icon of modern American liberalism and member of the Kennedy family, he was a younger brother of President John F...
and presidential adviser General Maxwell D. Taylor
Maxwell D. Taylor
General Maxwell Davenport "Max" Taylor was an United States Army four star general and diplomat of the mid-20th century, who served as the fifth Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff after having been appointed by the President of the United States John F...
.
Little Feller I has the additional distinction of being the last atmospheric nuclear detonation conducted by the United States of America. That is, although testing continued for many years thereafter, all further tests were conducted underground, in accordance with the Partial Test Ban Treaty
Partial Test Ban Treaty
The treaty banning nuclear weapon tests in the atmosphere, in outer space and under water, often abbreviated as the Partial Test Ban Treaty , Limited Test Ban Treaty , or Nuclear Test Ban Treaty is a treaty prohibiting all test detonations of nuclear weapons...
. An additional footnote is Operation Roller Coaster
Operation Roller Coaster
Operation Roller Coaster was a series of 4 nuclear tests conducted at the Nellis Air Force Range in 1963. The tests examined the dispersal of plutonium in storage and transportation accidents and were not expected to produce any nuclear explosive yield...
. Although this later series of tests involved no true nuclear detonation, they did disperse radioactive material using conventional explosives and thus may alternatively be considered the last aboveground nuclear test.
External links
- "The Davy Crockett and the W54 warhead" from the Brookings InstitutionBrookings InstitutionThe Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, D.C., in the United States. One of Washington's oldest think tanks, Brookings conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics, metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, and...
- Video of the M-388 Davy Crockett Nuclear Test
- Operation Ivy Flats government film (1962)