Nuclear testing in New Mexico
The recent release of the movie “Oppenheimer” has sparked a renewed interest in New Mexico’s own nuclear history, in particular as related to nuclear testing. Nearly 2,000 nuclear weapons tests have taken place since the first one on July 16, 1945. While not all of those tests occurred in New Mexico, that very first one did.
The Trinity site was right here in New Mexico. The world’s first nuclear explosion took place 210 miles south of Los Alamos, on the plains of the Alamogordo Bombing Range, known as the Jornada del Muerto. The code name for the test was “Trinity.”
Gadget, the plutonium device was hoisted atop a 100-foot tower and detonated at 5:30 a.m. Over the New Mexico desert, it released 18.6 kilotons of power. It instantly vaporized the tower and turned the surrounding asphalt and sand into green glass “trinitite.” Just seconds after the explosion, an enormous blast sent searing hearts across the desert, knocking observers to the ground.
Ground Zero was at the foot of the tower. Equipment, instruments, and observation points were established at varying distances from Ground Zero. The wooden observation shelters were protected by concrete and earthen barricades, and the nearest observation point was 5.7 miles from Ground Zero. To most observers—watching through dark glasses—the brilliance of the light from the explosion overshadowed the shock wave and sound that arrived some seconds later. A multi-colored cloud surged 38,000 feet into the air within seven minutes. Where the tower had been was a crater one-half mile across and eight feet deep.
The explosion was so big there were witnesses from over 150 miles away even as far as 200 miles. A forest ranger 150 miles west saw a flash of fire, an explosion and black smoke. 150 miles north a witness said the explosion “lighted up the sky like the sun."
In Albuquerque, a U.S. Navy pilot flying said it lit up the cockpit of his plane and was like the sun rising in the south. He radioed Albuquerque Air Traffic Control for an explanation and was simply told “Don’t fly south.” After the test the Alamogordo Air Base issued a press release that stated simply, “A remotely located ammunition magazine containing a considerable amount of high explosives and pyrotechnics exploded, but there was no loss of life or limb to anyone.” After the U.S. bombing of Hiroshima, Japan, on Aug. 6, 1945, was when the actual cause of the blast was disclosed.
The success of the Trinity test meant an atomic bomb could be used by the U.S. military and it marked the start of the Atomic Age. The site is now part of the White Sands Missile Range and is owned by the Department of Defense. After the explosion, Trinity Site was encircled with more than a mile of chain-link fencing, and signs were posted to warn people of radioactivity. The site was closed to both WSMR personnel and the general public. By 1953, much of the radioactivity had subsided, and the first Trinity Site open house was held in September of that year. In 1965, Army officials erected a monument on Ground Zero. In 1975, the National Park Service designated Trinity Site as a National Historic Landmark. The landmark includes base camp, where the scientists and support group lived; the McDonald ranch house, where the plutonium core was assembled; as well as Ground Zero. Ground zero is marked by an obelisk made of black lava rock, with an attached commemorative sign. A slightly depressed area several hundred yards across surrounds the monument, indicating where the blast scoured the ground. Only a few pieces of the green trinitite remain in a protected enclosure.
Today, visits to the site are sponsored by WSMR in April and October. The rest of the year the site is closed to the public because it lies within the impact zone for missiles fired into the northern part of WSMR. New Mexico has such a rich deep history. To learn more about the Trinity site or the Atomic Age make sure to stop by the library. We have books that show how the testing impacted New Mexicans far after the testing took place. We just added a graphic novel that shows the story of Oppenheimer. We have lots of great ways to learn more about the history of our beautiful state.
Sarah Jones is the Carlsbad Public Library executive director. Sarah can be reached by phone 575-885-6776 or by email at sejones@cityofcarlsbadnm.com. Visit the Carlsbad Public Library website at https://cityofcarlsbadnm.com/departments/carlsbad-public-library/.
This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: Nuclear testing in New Mexico
