Document Details

OPERATION PLUMBBOB, NEVADA TEST SITE, MAY - OCTOBER 1957, PROJECT 4.1, EFFECTS OF NUCLEAR DETONATIONS ON A LARGE BIOLOGICAL SPECIMEN ( SWINE )

MCDONNEL, G M; CROSBY, W H; TESSMER, C F

PLUMBBOB OPERATION; SWINE; BIOLOGICAL RADIATION EFFECTS

Location - DOE/NNSA NUCLEAR TESTING ARCHIVE Address - P.O. Box 98521 City - Las Vegas State - NV Zip - 89193-8521 Phone - (702)794-5106 Fax - (702)862-4240 Email - NTA@NV.DOE.GOV

REPORT

1957 May 31

Unknown

0200

NV0006229

WT1428

1994 Aug 26

2003 Sep 18

THE DATA PRESENTED IN THIS REPORT RESULTS FROM INVESTIGATION OF THE EF FECT OF NUCLEAR DEVICES ON A LARGE BIOLOGICAL SPECIMEN (SWINE) IN THE FOLLOWING FIELDS: INJURIES CAUSED BY THE NUCLEAR DEVICE, WOUNDS PRODUC ED BY GLASS MISSILES AS THE WOUNDING AGENT, AND RADIATION STUDIES WITH EXPOSURE TO BOTH GAMMA RAYS AND NEUTRONS. THE PIG CHOSEN AS THE BIOL OGICAL TARGET BECAUSE THIS ANIMAL APPROXIMATED THE HUMAN IN CROSS SECT ION (FOR THE RADIATION STUDY) AND HAD BEEN THE SUBJECT OF PREVIOUS STU DY DURING OPERATION GREENHOUSE. FURTHERMORE, CONSIDERABLE BURN RESEAR CH HAS BEEN DONE ON THE PIG. TWELVE HUNDRED PIGS WERE USED IN THIS ME DICAL EXPERIMENT DURING SHOTS FRANKLIN, WILSON, AND PRISCILLA AT THE N EVADA TEST SITE. THE DATA OBTAINED IS EXTRAPOLATED, WHEREVER POSSIBLE , TO HUMANS. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN AND THE ANIMAL STUDIED HAVE BEEN SHO WN TO BE ADEQUATE FOR THIS STUDY. THE MEDIAN LETHAL DOSE OF NUCLEAR D EVICE RADIATION WAS SHOWN TO BE 486 PLUS OR MINUS 10 REP OF GAMMA RAYS AND NEUTRONS. THE RADIATION SYNDROME AND MEDIAN SURVIVAL TIMES WERE SIMILAR TO THOSE IN PREVIOUS ANIMAL STUDIES. WOUNDS AND BURNS IN COMB INATION WITH NUCLEAR RADIATION HAVE BEEN STUDIED AT ALL DOSE LEVELS. COMBINED TRAUMA AND WHOLE-BODY RADIATION RESULTS IN EARLIER DEATH AND AN INCREASE IN TOTAL MORTALITY. THE LIVING SPECIMEN WITHIN THE RADIUS OF THE PRECURSOR, AND IN THE OPEN, WILL EXPERIENCE NEAR INEVITABLE MO RTALITY FROM DISMEMBERMENT OR DISPLACEMENT. FOXHOLES AT THE SAME RADI US PROTECT AGAINST SECONDARY BLAST EFFECTS AND LINE-OF-SIGHT THERMAL B UT NOT NECESSARILY AGAINST IONIZING RADIATION. BATTLEFIELD DEBRIS OUT SIDE THE PRECURSOR REGION DOES NOT PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT WOUNDS. ANALYS IS OF THE FATE OF A LIVING SPECIMEN (HUMAN) IN VARIOUS ENVIRONMENTS WA S SHOWN TO BE DONE BEST BY EXPOSING A TEST ANIMAL ALONG WITH TEST GAGE S OR DEVICES. IN SPECIMENS EXPOSED TO THE COMBINED INJURIES FROM A NU CLEAR DETONATION, THE MOST FREQUENT BACTERIOLOGICAL INVADERS ARE STAPH YLOCOCCUS ALBUS, BETA-HEMOLYTIC STREPTOCOCCUS AND PASTEURELLA MULTOCID A-ORGANISMS ORIGINATING FROM SITES OTHER THAN THE GASTROINTESTINAL TRA CT. SPLEEN BONE-MARROW HOMOGENATE WAS INEFFECTIVE IN REDUCING THE MOR TALITY FROM IONIZING RADIATION. A NEW PROCEDURE FOR TOTAL LEUKOCYTE C OUNTS IS PRESENTED AS A METHOD OF SCREENING RADIATION CASUALTIES. OPE RATIONAL CONCEPTS AFFECTING THE MEDICAL EVALUATION OF CASUALTIES AND T HE RESULTANT THERAPY ARE PRESENTED.