Operation Redwing Report of the Commander Task Group 7.1 (Deleted)

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Weport of the Commander 1 This is an extract of WT-1259, Operation REDWING, Task Group 7.1, which remains classified SECRET/RESTRICTED DATAKNWDI as of this date. Extract version prepared for: DEFENSE NUCLEAR AGENCY

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Operation REDWING - Report of the Comander, Task Los Alamos, New Mexico / ';proved for publfc release; unlimfted distribution. 'h-f;report has had the classified informationrmoved and has beep republished!n mclasslfied form for public release. This work was perfomc!d by the General Electric :mpany-TEMPO under contract DNADOl-78-C-0455with the close cooperatjonof the lassiffcationHanagment Division of the Defense Nuclear Agcncy.

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This report has had classified material removed in order to make the information available on an unciaraificd, open publication basis, to any interested parties. This effort to declassify this report has been accomplished specifically to support the Department of Defense Nuclear Test ;Otrsonntl Review CNTPR) Program. The objective is to facilitate studier of the low levels of radiation received by sane individuals during the atmospheric nuclear test program by amking as much information as possible available to all interested parties. The material vhich has been deleted is all currently classified as Restricted Data or Formerly Restricted Data under the provision of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, (as amended) or is National Security Information. This report has beta reproduced directly from, available copies of the original material. The locations from vhich material has been deleted is generally obvious by the spacings and “holes” in the text. Thus the context of the material deleted identified to assist the reader in the determination of whether the deleted information is germane to his study. It is the belief of the individuals who have participated in preparing this report by deleting the classified material and of the Defense Nuclear Agency that the report accurately portrays the contents of the original and that the deleted material is of little or no signiiicancc to studies into the amounts or Lypes of radiation received by any individuals during the atmospheric nuclear test program.

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The basic planning for the activities of Task Group 7.1 in Operation Redwing was done under the direction of William E. Og.2, Deputy Commander for Sctentific Matters, Joint Task Force Seven, who until January of 1956 was Task Group Commander, and it is to him that credit should be given for the concept and major policy determinations. This report is a description of the way in which his plans were carried out. Like the Operation itself, this report is the work of many people. R was assembled by the Task Group staff under the direction of Duncan Curry, Jr., Deputy for Administration, Task Group 7.1, from data provided by Programs, Projects, Task Units, and Staff Sections. A list of contributing authors is given below. Ralph Carlisle Smith

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CHAPTER 1 OBJECTIVES, DEVICES, AND WEAPONS 15 1.1 Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory 27CHAPTER 2 SUMMARY OF EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAMS 2.1 Task Unit 3, DOD Programs 2.1.1 Program 1, Blast and Shock 2.1.2 Program 2, Nuclear Radiation and Effects 2.1.3 Program 3, Structural Response .2.1.4 Program 4, Biomedical Effects 2.1.5 Program 5, Aircraft Structures 2.1.6 Program 6, Service Equipment and Techniques 2.1.7 Program 8, Thermal Effects

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2.1.8 Program 9, Technical Photography 37 2.2 Task Unit 1, LASL Programs 38 2.2.2 Program 10, Yield Measurements by Fireball 2.2.4 Program 12, External Neutron Measurements 2.2.5 Program 13, Alpha Measurements 2.2.7 Program 16, Physics, Electronics, and 2.2.8 Program 18, Radiation Measurements in the 2.2.9 Program 19, Nuclear Vulnerability 2.3 Task Unit 2, UCRL Programs 2.3.2 Program 22, Reaction History 2.3.3 Program 23, Diagnostfc Photography 2.4 Task Unit 4, SC P,rograms and Program 35 2.4.3 Program 35, Radiobiological Survey CHAPTER 3 GENERAL ACTIVITIES OF TASK GROUP 7.1 62 3.2 Organization and Command Relationships 3.4 Planning and Training 3.4.1 Programs, Concepts, and Schedules 3.4.2 Determination of Requirements 3.4.3 Training rend Rehearsals 3.5 Movement to the Forward Area and Assembly of Subordinate Units 3.6 Movement of Dcviccs and Components

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TraIlsmission of Ckssificd Documents in the Access to Ibstrictcd D:rta 3.15 Classification and Related Activities *3.15.2 Control of Nonclassiflcd Information *3.15.3 Photographic Matcrial Control *In order to emphnsizc operational conclusions and recommendations, sections where they appear have been marked with an asterisk..

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*3.17.4 Unusual Incidents and Special Problems 3.18 Disposition of Forces (Roil-Up) *3.19 Conclusions and Rcccmmcndations 3.19.2 J-l Section, Personnel and Administration 3.19.3 J-3 Section, Plans and Operations CHAPTER 4 SURNARY OF TASK UhXT ACTIKTXES 139 4.1 Task Unit 1, LhSL Programs s 4.2 Task Unit 2, UCRL Programs *4.3 Task Unit 3, DOD Programs 4.4 Task Unit 4, SC Programs 4.4 .l Mission of Task Unit 4 4.4.2 Operations in Forward Area *In order to emphasize operational conclusions and recommendations, sections where they appear have been marked with an asterisk.

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4.5 Task Unit 5, Timing 4.6 Task Unit 6, Firing 4.7 Task Unit 7, Rad;ologica! Safety 4.9 Task Unit 9, UCRL Docunmitnry Photography *4.11) Task Unit 10, LASL Assembly 4.11 Task Unit 11, UCRL Assembly A CHAPTER 3 GENERAL ACTiVITIES OF TASK GROUP 7.1 3.1 Organization Chart -- Task Group 7.1 3.3 Task Group 7.1 Weekly Populat,on at the Pacffic Proving Ground, Jan. 1, 1956, to Aug. 1, 1956 3.4 Estimated and Actual Population During Roll-Up CHAPTER 4 SUMMARY OF TASK UNIT ACTMTIES 4.2 X-2; of Eniwetok Atoll 160 4.3 Mai) of Bikini Atoll 161 *In order to emphasize operational conclusions and recommendations, sections where they appear have been marked with an asterisk.

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CHAPTER 2 SUMMARY OF EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAMS Yield by Fireball Hydrodynamics Fission Yields by Radiochemistry and Capture-toAlpha Mcnsurements on Fission Devices - 44 Preliininary Values for the Fission Yield and Uranium CHAPTER 3 GENERAL ACTIVITIES OF TASK GROUP 7.1 3.1 Key Personnel of Task Group 7.1 67 3.2 Redwing Shot Schedule 73 3.3 Major Items of Military Support 76

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- Atomic Energy Commission - Air Force Base - Air Force Office for Atomic Energy - Air Forcr Special Weapons Center Armed Forces Special Weapons Project amphibious force flagship Argonne National Laboratory * high speed transport Air Resenrch and Dcvclopmcnt Command salvage lifting vessels . ocean tug, fleet Ballistic Research Laboratories Califormn Forest and IQ&e Experiment Station Chief of Saval Opertitions, .. Continental United Slates Chemical and Radiological Labo!atorleti aircraft carriers, escort Division of Biology and Medicfnc, AEC Department of Defense Edgerton, Gertncshausen & Grier, Inc. Engineer Research and Development Laboratory Evans Signal Laboralo ry Marine Helicopter Squadron

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IBDA - indirect bomb damage assessment ICC - Interstate Commerce Commission ICBM -- intcrccntinental ballistic missile LCM landing craft, 30 ton capacity LCPR personnel craft with ramp - 36 passenger LCU landing craft, utility - 150 ton capacity LOR4N long range navigation system XATS Pblilitary Air Transport Z’ervfce SIP - military poiice mr/nr miliirocntgens per hour MSTS Military Sea Transport Service MWB motor whale boat Nnval Ordnance Laboratory Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory Naval Research Laboratory Nevada Test Site New York Operations Office, AEC Pacific Division, Military Air Trsnsport Service Pacific Proving Ground pounds per square inch roentgens per hour Radiological S fcty Support Unit

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Air Force School of Aviation MedIclne Starch and Rescue Santa Fe Operations Office, AEC Scripps Institution of Oceanography standing opcratlng procedure trnuspcratiun control agent Teat Services Unlt uitra high frcqucncy _ United States Naval Service University of Washington Appiied Eisheries Laboratory very high freqency Wright Air Development Center l b’eapons Effects Test Division, F.ield Command, AFSWP world wide NT3S radto time signal zuxilinry, miscclkaneous ‘(L!berty Ship) drcraft transportation lighter zone of interior

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Cl&Jl-CTIVES, DEVICES, AND WEAPOSS In Operation Rcth~ing. ten devices dcsigncd by LASL were fired, Some of thcsc iverc proof tests of devices suitable as wcrpons for the national nature which co:cld be uenponizcd if their performance proved sufficiently attrw tivc . 2-1 c.tch of these shots diagnostic csperiments were made to evaluate their pcr;?mancc if they worked properiy, or to dctcrmine the difficulty if they did not. In addition, many esperiments were undertaken to obtain more precise understanding of he factors and physical propertics which underlie nuclear weapon design or the effects that they produce. both Class D wcnpons for cxtcrnal carriage on fighter p%es and for mis-

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1.3 DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE The Joint Chiefs of Staff on JuIy 8, 1955, approved the incorporation of a military effects program in Operation Redwing, including a special effects test of an air-delivered thermonuclear weapon of approximately Lyield; and the Secretary of Defense was requested to seek Presidential approval for the expenditure of a -- nuclear components, from the nation stockprle for this specific purpose. The Joint Chiefs of Staff on April 24, 1953, approved the following policy relative to field tests of atomic devices and weapons:

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“For tests involving nuclear detonations participated in or conducted by agencies of the Government of the United States, the Chief, Armed Forces Special Weapons Project, will exercis 9 within any task force organization, technical direction of weapons effects tests of primary concern to the Armed Forces and the weapons effects phases of developmental or other tests of Under this authority the Chief, AFSWP, augmented the responsibilities of the Commanding General, Field Command, AFSWP, to include the responsibilities of the Chief, AFSWP, arising from the preparational, operational and postoperational phases of the weapon effects tests of primary concern to the Armed Forces and weapon effects phases of developmental and other tests of atomic weapons outside the continental United States. Accordingly, the Chief, AFSWP, having completed the preliminary phase o! Operation Redwing, assigned to the Commander, Field Command, IFSWP, *he tission of conducting *he preparational, operational and postoperational phases of these tests. The Director, WFTD, a staff agency under the jurisdiction of the Commandor, Field Command, AFSWP, was assigned functions associated with the detailed p!anning and field implementation of’ the DOD Weapons Effects Programs, Operation Redwing. The joint AEC-?OD scientific organfzatlon, Task Group 7.1, was charged with conducting the scientific tests including the DOD Weapons Effects Programs dur:ng the operational phase It the PPG. The approved military wea_pon effects tests projects in Procutlined in Chapter 2. Within the established funds, the Commander JTF ‘7 could modify the projects as required by operations!. necessity. Within sinMar iimitations, the Commzder, Field Command, _4FSWP. could modify the projects as requiTed by technical necessity. Colonel L. L. Woodward, USAF, was assigned as the Technical Direct?; to the Directorate of Weapons Effects Tests, Field Command, AFSWP, and acted as the Deputy for DOD to Commander TG 7.1 during this operation. The DOD Weapons Effects -Programs 1 through 9 were orgxnized under Task Unit 3 of TG 7.1, which was commanded by Colonel K. D. Coleman, Generally, the DOD program participation in Redwing was somewhat greater in magnitude than in Castle. The air drop of a thermonuclear weapon from a B-52 tflJe aircraft flying atr J was of special interest to The blast program for Redwing was designed to obtain basic blast data from a number of different types of events. Of primary fmportance was &rticipatfon on the air drop, on a medium-yield surface burst, and on the

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megaton surface burst. Basic blast measurements included the use of the rocket smoke-trail photographic technique for determining peak pressure and telemetered overpressures as a function of time at various ranges in free lir from the high-yield afr burst. Aerodynamic drag characteristics of various full-scale and model shapes were subjected to transient loadings under full-scale conditions. Crater survey measurements were made for certain surface shots, and the surface water waves generated by large nuclear devices were studied for effects. One of the primary military results desired from Redwing we.s the dcvclopment of criteria and models for calculating the distribution of radioactive fallout material resulting from hi,;h-yield nuclear detonations. This information is required in both offensive and defensive military planning. A comprehensive fallout program was designed to document thoroughly the distribution and nature of the fallout. This included measurements of the activity in the initial cloud and stem and the collection of samples of fa!lout material over vast surface areas. The analysis of all this infcrmation produced a valid model for the initial distributfon of activity and particle size in the cloud and stem from which fallout patterns can be computed under various conditions with some degree of accuracy. To add to the present available information on probable target vulnerability, six steel industrial building structures were constructed. Some were located on man-made islands, and were planned to demonstrate the differences in the effect of short and long duration blast loadings on dragsensitive and on semidrak-sensitive structures. This was a continuation of a project. the first part of which was cnnductcd duzing Teapot. Rabbits and monkeys were used as test anfmals to gain knowledge of thermal effects of atomic weapons on the eye. Information was received on the portions of the time-light intensity curve that will produce retinal burns. This information will be used in the study of blink reflex times and the evaluation of the effectiveness of various filters and mechanical and electrical dcviccs designed for eye protection. craft were instrumented for blast and thermal cffccts and flown with a / predetermined flight path so as to arrive at the proper test positions at the / time of burst. Response data were recorded ,and used to determine air- i craft capabilities for the delivery of atomic weapons. K-system radar and ; Raydist navigational systems were used in positioning the afrcraft, and these i i. systems were checked by aerial photography. I Two systcrils were tcstcd for the purpose of locating ground zero and ,cstimating yields of nuclear cxzlosions. These systems measured at distant i

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observation posts the electromagnetic pulse generated by the explosions. One system used a short base line of approximately 30 miles, and the other a long base line of approximately .1500 miles. Vertically transmitted electromagnetic pulses from 1 to 25 MC were used to determine the effect of atomic explosions on the height and integrity of the F-layer of the ionosphere. The principal effort in the thermal program was devoted to the measurement of basic thermal characteristics from stations located on or near the ground. A basic ground station placed close to GZ employed calorimeters and radiometers exposed from an instrument tree above ground, with recording instruments being protected underground. Stations farther removed from Cl. contained spectrometers, bolomcters, radiometers and calorimeters mounted inside instrument trailers. Some of the parameters determined front the basic thermal measurements were irradiance, total radiant energy, and times to first maximum, minimum, and second maximum. The spectrometers recorded the spectral distribution of radiant energy with distance. A spectrometer station was mounted in a P2V-2 type aircraft to correlate results of surface and airborne transmission and spectrum measurements. Alpha-cellulose paper, wood, and other materials were exposed to thermal radiation in order to determine critical ignition energies. Various types of aircraft sandwich panels were exposed to determine the damage effects of the long thermal pulse associated with high-yield devices. A technical photography program was conducted to determine photogrammetricaily the various parameters of nuclear clouds as a functfon of time and to establish appropriate scaling reiations. This progr&m was designed to procure data leading to better knowledge of weapon vulnerability in relation to both blast wld close-in thermal damage from the fireball. The technical …