Document Details

OPERATION TEAPOT - PROJECT 2.4, GAMMA DOSE RATE VERSUS TIME AND DISTANCE (DELETED)

TEAPOT OPERATION

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

1959 Oct 28

Sanitized

0059

NV0015445

WT1118EX

DEFENSE ATOMIC SUPPORT AGENCY, DOD

1994 Aug 26

2003 Sep 18

PROJECT 2.4 OBJECTIVES WERE: (1) TO MEASURE THE GAMMA INTENSITY VERSUS TIME OF AN UNDERGROUND NUCLEAR DETONATION AT SEVERAL DISTANCES FROM GR OUND ZERO; AND (2) TO MEASURE THE NEUTRON-INDUCED GAMMA ACTIVITY VERSU S TIME IN THE VICINITY OF GROUND ZERO OF AIR BURSTS AND TO DETERMINE T HE DECAY RATE OF THIS ACTIVITY. THE PROJECT PARTICIPATED IN FIVE SHOTS . GAMMA-DOSE-RATE MEASUREMENTS WERE MADE DOWNWIND AND UPWIND FROM GROU ND ZERO FOLLOWING SHOT ESS. SHOT ESS WAS DETONATED 67 FEET UNDERGROUND AND HAD A YIELD OF 1.2 KT. GAMMA MEASUREMENTS WERE MADE AT RANGES FROM 300 TO 6,100 YARDS ALONG AZIMUTHS OF 80 DEGREES AND 120 DEGREES AND AT RANGES OF 700 AND 1,650 YARDS FOR AZIMUTHS OF 220 DEGREES AND 280 DEGR EES. FOLLOWING AIR BURSTS WASP AND WASP, WHICH WERE DETONATED AT ALTIT UDES OF 762 AND 740 FEET WITH YIELDS OF 1.2 AND 3.1 KT RESPECTIVELY, G AMMA DOSE RATES WERE MEASURED AS FOLLOWS: (TABLE ON PAGE 4). TWO MAIN TYPES OF INSTRUMENTS WERE USED: SCINTILLATION DETECTORS, FOR MEASURING HIGH GAMMA-RADIATION RATES; AND ION-CHAMBER DETECTORS, FOR MEASURING B OTH HIGH AND LOW GAMMA-RADIATION RATES. AN EXPERIMENTAL CADMIUM-SULFID E (CDS) DETECTOR WAS USED WITH THE REGULAR INSTRUMENTS TO CHECK ITS BE HAVIOR UNDER FIELD CONDITIONS. THE REPEATABILITY OF THIS TYPE OF DETEC TOR WAS NOT GOOD ENOUGH TO CONSIDER IT FOR FUTURE INSTRUMENTATION. A D ETECTOR IN A BEACH BALL DROPPED INTO SHOT ESS CRATER COULD NOT BE RECO VERED. DOSE-RATE-VERSUS-TIME DATA FROM THE UNDERGROUND EVENT SUPPORTED A POWER-LAW DECAY WITH A SLOPE OF-1.2 AFTER 10 MINUTES. AT TIMES EARLI ER THAN 10 MINUTES, THE DOSE-RATE RECORDS REFLECTED THE ARRIVAL AND PA SSAGE OF THE AIR-BORNE RADIOACTIVE DEBRIS AT THE DETECTOR STATIONS AND , THUS, DID NOT LENT THEMSELVES TO DOSE-RATE DECAY ANALYSIS. THE DOSE -RATE-VERSUS-TIME DATA FROM THE AIR BURSTS, WASP AND WASP SHOWED RADIA TION EMANATIONS FROM ISOTOPES IN THE SOIL. AL-28, MN-56, AND NA-24 WER E THE CHIEF CONTRIBUTORS. AN ATTEMPT WAS MADE TO CORRELATE RESULTS OF SHOTS WASP AND WASP WITH SHOTS MOTH AND TESLA, BUT INSTRUMENT FAILURE MADE THIS CORRELATION IMPOSSIBLE. THIS DOCUMENT IS A DELETED VERSION.