Long-Term Surveillance and Maintenance Plan for the Salmon, Mississippi, Site

Technical Report · Wed Nov 02 04:00:00 EDT 2022

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1922199· OSTI ID:1922199

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Legacy Management (LM) prepared this Long-Term Surveillance and Maintenance Plan (LTS&M Plan) for the Salmon, Mississippi, Site (the Salmon site) to describe LM’s plan and policy for future site activities. The Salmon site consists of 1470 acres in Lamar County, Mississippi, approximately 10 miles west of Purvis, Mississippi, and about 21 miles southwest of Hattiesburg, Mississippi. The site is located over a large subsurface salt formation referred to as the Tatum Salt Dome. Two nuclear tests (Project Dribble) and two gas explosive tests (Project Miracle Play) were conducted in the salt dome between 1964 and 1970. Salmon, the first nuclear test, was conducted on October 22, 1964, and created a cavity approximately 2700 feet (ft) below ground surface (bgs). The second nuclear test, Sterling, was conducted on December 3, 1966. The Sterling test and the two gas explosions—Diode Tube on February 2, 1969, and Humid Water on April 19, 1970—were all conducted in the cavity created by the Salmon test. The four explosions were conducted as part of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission’s (AEC’s) Vela Uniform program. Testing at the site ended in 1970 after the second gas detonation. The tests resulted in residual contamination and postdetonation features that require long-term oversight.

• Research Organization: US Department of Energy (USDOE), Washington DC (United States). Office of Legacy Management (LM)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Legacy Management (LM), Office of Field Operations
• DOE Contract Number: 89303020DLM000001
• OSTI ID: 1922199
• Report Number(s): LMS/SAL/S01136-1.0
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION