Background & Historical Information 

Images:

The Sedan Crater
The Sedan Crater was created on July 6, 1962 by a 106 kT nuclear device was exploded. The device was buried 635 feet underground but still created a crater 320 feet deep and 1,280 feet across. 12 million tons of earth were displaced.

Links:

The Certification Process
A description of the process that certifies the United States nuclear stockpile as secure from the publication of Lawrence Livermore Labs, Science & Technology Review, July/August 2001 issue.

DOE Inspector General report on test readiness
Report from the Department of Energy's Inspector General on the status of the National Nuclear Security Administration's Enhanced Test Readiness Program.
August 3, 2004

Nevada Test Site Historical Information
Historical publications from the Nevada nuclear test site maintained by the Department of Energy.

The Certification Process
A description of the process that certifies the United States nuclear stockpile as secure from the publication of Lawrence Livermore Labs, Science & Technology Review, July/August 2001 issue. 

Related Items:

Plot of worldwide nuclear tests

The US leads the world in nuclear weapons tests, having conducted 1050 tests over nearly 50 years. Between 1945 and 2002, 2046 nuclear tests were conducted worldwide.

US Nuclear Tests: July 1945 through September 1992

This document lists chronologically and alphabetically by name all nuclear tests and simultaneous detonations conducted by the United States from July 1945 through September 1992.

Representative Jim Matheson's bill on nuclear weapons testing

A bill by Rep. Jim Matheson (D-UT) to protect public health and safety, should the testing of nuclear weapons by the United States be resumed.
 

JASON report JSR-95-320: Nuclear Testing

JASON report JSR-95-320 (Nuclear Testing: Summary and Conclusions) is the unclassified summary of a much longer document detailing the performance of each type of weapon in the stockpile and examining whether underground testing would add to the confidence in the stockpile.
August 3, 1995

 

Nuclear Weapon Development without Nuclear Testing?
This article by Richard Garwin and Vadim Simonenko discusses the possibility of developing new nuclear weapons without testing them. It discusses many of the steps needed to test components to ensure a working completed device.
October 27, 1996
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