1968 Soviet nuclear tests

1968 Soviet Union nuclear bomb tests List of nuclear weapons tests of the Soviet Union 1968 Nuclear Blast Animation Rising Mushroom Cloud.gif Nuclear blast animation Soviet Union Atyrau, Kazakhstan; Balapan, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan; Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan; Kashkadarya, Uzbekistan; NZ Area B, Matochkin Shar, Novaya Zemlya, Russia; Semipalatinsk Test Site 1968 17 cratering, underground shaft, tunnel 165 ktTNT in 1967 Soviet nuclear tests 1969 Soviet nuclear tests 1968 Soviet nuclear tests The Soviet Union's 1968 nuclear test series was a group of 17 nuclear tests conducted in 1968. These testsA bomb test may be a salvo test, defined as two or more explosions "where a period of time between successive individual explosions does not exceed 5 seconds and where the burial points of all explosive devices can be connected by segments of straight lines, each of them connecting two burial points and does not exceed 40 kilometers in length". V. N. Mikhailov Catalog of World Wide Nuclear Testing Begell-Atom, LLC http://www.iss-atom.ru/ksenia/catal_nt/1.htm 2013-12-16 https://web.archive.org/web/20140426102201/http://www.iss-atom.ru/ksenia/catal_nt/1.htm 2014-04-26 dead followed the 1967 Soviet nuclear tests series and preceded the 1969 Soviet nuclear tests series. + Soviet Union's 1968 series tests and detonations Name The US, France and Great Britain have code-named their test events, while the USSR and China did not, and therefore have only test numbers (with some exceptions – Soviet peaceful explosions were named). Word translations into English in parentheses unless the name is a proper noun. A dash followed by a number indicates a member of a salvo event. The US also sometimes named the individual explosions in such a salvo test, which results in "name1 – 1(with name2)". If test is canceled or aborted, then the row data like date and location discloses the intended plans, where known. Date time (UT) Local time zoneTo convert the UT time into standard local, add the number of hours in parentheses to the UT time; for local daylight saving time, add one additional hour. If the result is earlier than 00:00, add 24 hours and subtract 1 from the day; if it is 24:00 or later, subtract 24 hours and add 1 to the day. Historical time zone data obtained from the IANA time zone database.Time Zone Historical Database iana.com http://www.ietf.org/timezones/ March 8, 2014 LocationRough place name and a latitude/longitude reference; for rocket-carried tests, the launch location is specified before the detonation location, if known. Some locations are extremely accurate; others (like airdrops and space blasts) may be quite inaccurate. "~" indicates a likely pro-forma rough location, shared with other tests in that same area. Elevation + height Elevation is the ground level at the point directly below the explosion relative to sea level; height is the additional distance added or subtracted by tower, balloon, shaft, tunnel, air drop or other contrivance. For rocket bursts the ground level is "N/A". In some cases it is not clear if the height is absolute or relative to ground, for example, Plumbbob/John. No number or units indicates the value is unknown, while "0" means zero. Sorting on this column is by elevation and height added together. Delivery,Atmospheric, airdrop, balloon, gun, cruise missile, rocket, surface, tower, and barge are all disallowed by the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. Sealed shaft and tunnel are underground, and remained useful under the PTBT. Intentional cratering tests are borderline; they occurred under the treaty, were sometimes protested, and generally overlooked if the test was declared to be a peaceful use.Purpose Include weapons development, weapon effects, safety test, transport safety test, war, science, joint verification and industrial/peaceful, which may be further broken down. DeviceDesignations for test items where known, "?" indicates some uncertainty about the preceding value, nicknames for particular devices in quotes. This category of information is often not officially disclosed. YieldEstimated energy yield in tons, kilotons, and megatons. A ton of TNT equivalent is defined as 4.184 gigajoules (1 gigacalorie). FalloutRadioactive emission to the atmosphere aside from prompt neutrons, where known. The measured species is only iodine-131 if mentioned, otherwise it is all species. No entry means unknown, probably none if underground and "all" if not; otherwise notation for whether measured on the site only or off the site, where known, and the measured amount of radioactivity released. References Notes 280280 dmy 1968 1 7 03:46:59.9 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 810 49.7544 78.0309 280 inline 000698698 m on + tunnel,peaceful research 000075000 7.5 kt Venting detected 281281 dmy 1968 4 24 10:35:59.7 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 505 49.8452 78.1032 281 inline 000587587 m on + tunnel,weapons development 000062000 6.2 kt 282 Pamuk282 Pamuk dmy 1968 5 21 03:59:12.0 SAMT (5 hrs) Kashkadarya, Uzbekistan 38.83291 65.0871 282 Pamuk inline 000000 – 2440 m on underground shaft,extinguishing oil/gas fires 000470000 47 kt Used to extinguish active well fire. Note the burnt well just north of location. 283283 dmy 1968 5 23 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 504 49.83067 78.0881 283 inline 000617617 m on + tunnel,weapons development 000000010 1000 kg 284284 dmy 1968 6 11 03:05:59.7 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 605 49.793 78.1451 284 inline 000660660 m on + tunnel,weapons development 000150000 15 kt 285285 dmy 1968 6 19 05:05:59.8 ALMT (6 hrs) Balapan, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 1053 49.9812 78.98461 285 inline 000330330 m on + underground shaft,fundamental science 000180000 18 kt 286 Galit A2 (Halite)286 Galit A2 (Halite) dmy 1968 7 1 04:02:00.5 SHET (5 hrs) Atyrau, Kazakhstan: A-II 47.909 47.912 286 Galit A2 (Halite) inline 000000 – 590 m on underground shaft,cavity excavation 000270000 27 kt 287 - 1287 dmy 1968 7 12 12:08:00.0 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 608 49.7547 78.0899 287 - 1 inline 000470642 m on – 172 m on tunnel,weapons development 000240000 24 kt 287 - 2287 dmy 1968 7 12 12:08:00.0 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 608 49.7547 78.0899 287 - 2 inline 000642642 m on + tunnel,weapons development 000000000 unknown yield 288 - 1288 dmy 1968 8 20 04:05:59.6 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: A-7 49.8226 78.0774 288 - 1 inline 000705705 m on + tunnel,weapons development 000046000 4.6 kt 288 - 2288 dmy 1968 8 20 04:05:59.6 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: A-7 49.8226 78.0774 288 - 2 inline 000705705 m on + tunnel,safety experiment 000000010 1000 kg 289289 dmy 1968 9 5 04:05:59.6 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 509 49.7416 78.0756 289 inline 000651651 m on + tunnel,weapon effect 000320000 32 kt 290290 dmy 1968 9 29 03:43:00.0 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: E-2 49.812 78.1219 290 inline 000675675 m on + tunnel,weapon effect 000600000 60 kt 291 Tel'kem 1291 Tel'kem 1 dmy 1968 10 21 03:52:00.0 ALMT (6 hrs) Semipalatinsk Test Site: 2308 49.72839 78.48542 291 Tel'kem 1 inline 000000 – 31 m on cratering,earth moving 000002400 240 t Prototype canal cratering. 292292 dmy 1968 10 29 03:54:00.0 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 504p 49.82957 78.0906 292 inline 000617617 m on + tunnel,weapons development 000000000 unknown yield 293 - 1293 dmy 1968 11 7 10:02:05.49 MSK (3 hrs) NZ Area B, Matochkin Shar, Novaya Zemlya, Russia: A-3 73.387 54.858 293 - 1 inline 000000100 m on – 1000 m on tunnel,weapons development 000000010 1000 kg Venting detected on site, 10 kCi TBq on 293 - 2293 dmy 1968 11 7 10:02:05.5 MSK (3 hrs) NZ Area B, Matochkin Shar, Novaya Zemlya, Russia: A-3 73.387 54.858 293 - 2 inline 000100100 m on + tunnel,weapons development 001650000 165 kt 293 - 3293 dmy 1968 11 7 10:02:05.5 MSK (3 hrs) NZ Area B, Matochkin Shar, Novaya Zemlya, Russia: A-3 73.387 54.858 293 - 3 inline 000100100 m on + tunnel,weapons development 001650000 165 kt 294294 dmy 1968 11 9 02:54:00.1 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 606 49.8005 78.1391 294 inline 000724724 m on + tunnel,peaceful research 000040000 4 kt 295 Tel'kem 2 - 1295 Tel'kem 2 dmy 1968 11 12 07:30:00.0 ALMT (6 hrs) Semipalatinsk Test Site: 2305 49.71322 78.46018 295 Tel'kem 2 - 1 inline 000000 – 31 m on cratering,earth moving 000002400 240 t Prototype canal linear cratering. 295 Tel'kem 2 - 2295 Tel'kem 2 dmy 1968 11 12 07:30:00 ALMT (6 hrs) Semipalatinsk Test Site: 2306 49.71299 78.46051 295 Tel'kem 2 - 2 inline 000000 + cratering,earth moving 000002400 240 t Prototype canal linear cratering. 295 Tel'kem 2 - 3295 Tel'kem 2 dmy 1968 11 12 07:30:00 ALMT (6 hrs) Semipalatinsk Test Site: 2307 49.71273 78.4609 295 Tel'kem 2 - 3 inline 000000 + cratering,earth moving 000002400 240 t Prototype canal linear cratering. 296296 dmy 1968 12 18 05:01:59.7 ALMT (6 hrs) Degelen, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan: 508 49.7459 78.092 296 inline 000476670 m on – 194 m on tunnel,peaceful research 000089000 8.9 kt note References RFNC-VNIIEF 1996 USSR Nuclear Weapons Tests and Peaceful Nuclear Explosions 1949 through 1990 Sarov, Russia The official Russian list of Soviet tests. Podvig Pavel 2001 Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces MIT Press Cambridge, MA 9780262661812 https://books.google.com/books?id=CPRVbYDc-7kC&pg=PA453 January 9, 2014 Cochran Thomas B. Arkin William M. Robert S. Norris Jeffrey I. Sands Nuclear Weapons Databook Vol. IV: Soviet Nuclear Weapons Harper and Row New York, NY Khalturin Vitaly I. Tatyana G. Rautian Paul G. Richards 2000 10.1007/pl00001153 Chemical explosions during 1961-1989 on the Semipalatinsk Test Site, Kazakhstan Pure and Applied Geophysics 158 143–171 128953780 http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/res/div/sgt/vitaly/VIKh_papers/chemex_at_STS2000.pdf December 13, 2013 March 4, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160304120004/http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/res/div/sgt/vitaly/VIKh_papers/chemex_at_STS2000.pdf dead Thurber Clifford Chad Trabant Renate Hartog Assessing Event Location Capability with Ground Truth Events at the Degelen Mountain Test Site, Kazakhstan Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Arms Control Technology Division, Nuclear Treaties Branch DSWA01-98-10008 http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA529919 https://web.archive.org/web/20131215064824/http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=ADA529919 dead December 15, 2013 December 13, 2013 Yang Xiaoping Robert North Carl Romney August 2000 CMR Nuclear Explosion Database (Revision 3) SMDC Monitoring Research Nordyke M.D. The Soviet Program for Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Explosions UCRL-ID-12441O Rev 2 http://cryptocomb.org/The%20Soviet%20Program%20for%20Peaceful%20Uses%20of%20Nuclear%20Explosions.pdf December 13, 2013 Nuclear explosions in the USSR: The North Test Site reference material, version 4 December 1, 2004 IAEA Dept. of Nuclear Safety and Security http://www-ns.iaea.org/downloads/rw/waste-safety/north-test-site-final.pdf December 13, 2013 Won-Young Kim Paul G. Richards Vitaly Andrushkin Vladimir Ovtchinnikov April 1, 2001 Borovoye digital seismogram archive for underground nuclear tests during 1966-1996 LDEO http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/Monitoring/Data/Brv_arch_ex/brv_text_table.pdf December 13, 2013 Andrushkin Vitaly V. William Leith September 1, 2001 The containment of Soviet underground nuclear explosions USGS Open File Report 01-312 https://geology.er.usgs.gov/eespteam/pdf/USGSOFR01312.pdf December 13, 2013 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20130509080818/http://geology.er.usgs.gov/eespteam/pdf/USGSOFR01312.pdf May 9, 2013 1968 Nuclear tests Soviet nuclear tests Soviet nuclear tests