Archive description
During the course of the Christmas Island portion of Operation Dominic, a fairly simple, inexpensive method of making a rapid fireball yield determination was developed. In order to check the zero time alignment of the skysweeper antiaircraft mount on the burst point at zero time as provided by the Sandia 584 radar system, a pinhole camera camera was installed on the mount. This was helpful in determining whether or not the photographic and photoelectric diagnostic systems were observing the appropriate volume of air excited by prompt gamma and neutron radiation. After viewing the initial circular image on the Nambe event, it was decided that an attempt at a prompt fireball yield number would be made. Ad hoc scaling laws were used for the duration of the operation and the instant fireball yield number was included in several TWXs of early shot data. This report provides calculations, graphs, and illustrations which show that with the data now in hand, there is a simple method of determining a yield number to generally better than 10 percent. This number can be available within minutes after the detonation.
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