Nuclear Weapons Tests - Nevada Test Site (1951)

The video footage from 1951 (no audio) shows soldiers being exposed to high levels of radiation detonation during the explosion of an Mk-4 "NF" device with a yield of 21 kt. “Dog” (name of this particular test) was part of “Operation Buster-Jangle”, a series of seven (six atmospheric, one cratering) nuclear weapons tests conducted by the United States in late 1951 at the Nevada Test Site.

Buster-Jangle was the first joint test program between the DOD (Operation Buster) and Los Alamos National Laboratories (Operation Jangle). As part of Operation Buster, 6,500 troops were involved in the Operation Desert Rock I, II, and III exercises in conjunction with the tests (Read more about Buster-Jangle here).

The video shows soldiers in foxholes as the nuclear detonation occurs nearby; light and shock-waves; blowing dust; soldiers climbing out of foxholes and running towards mushroom cloud. This is an astounding footage of a nuclear weapons test with an atomic bomb explosion in the southwestern US desert (New Mexico). Great mushroom shots!

Nuclear Bomb Test Details

• Test Name: Dog
• Date & Time: 1 November 1951 15:30:01.6
• Location: NTS Area 7 (Nevada Test Site ) 37.0847°N 116.0206°W
• Elevation & Height: 1,280 m (4,200 ft) + 430 m (1,410 ft)
• Delivery & Purpose: Free air drop, weapons development
• Device: Mk-4 "NF"
• Yield: 21 kt
• Notes: Desert Rock I, no fallout (air burst). Troops trucked into defensive emplacements from 6 mi (9.7 km) observation point, held maneuvers.