Country United States Previous test series Operation Latchkey Number of tests 48 | Period 1967-1968 Start date 1967 | |
 | ||
Test site Central Nevada; near Farmington, New Mexico; NTS Area 12, Rainier Mesa; NTS Area 19, 20, Pahute Mesa; NTS Area 30, Dome Mountain; NTS Areas 5, 11, Frenchman Flat; NTS, Areas 1-4, 6-10, Yucca Flat Test type cratering, underground shaft, underground tunnel Max. yield 1.3 megatonnes of TNT (5.4 PJ) | ||
Operation Crosstie was a series of 48 nuclear tests conducted by the United States in 1967–1968 at the Nevada Test Site. These tests followed the Operation Latchkey series and preceded the Operation Bowline series.
Contents
Operation crosstie shot buggy
Gasbuggy
The blast designated Gasbuggy involved an underground detonation, intended to stimulate production of natural gas by cracking the rock in the underground formation of its deposit. The test proceeded as expected, but not only did the production not increase as much as expected, but the customers also refused to buy gas contaminated with traces of radioisotopes.
Buggy
Buggy was a Plowshare test designed to excavate a channel. It was a simultaneous detonation of 5 devices, placed 150 feet (46 m) apart and 150 feet (46 m) below the surface that resulted in a channel 300 feet (91 m) wide, 900 feet long, and 80 feet (24 m) deep . Or 65 feet deep and 254 feet wide, according to Declassified U.S. film.
The USSR conducted a similar salvo-test to investigate the use of nuclear explosions in the construction of the Pechora–Kama Canal project. On March 23, 1971, three simultaneously detonated 15 kiloton underground nuclear charges were exploded in the Taiga test.
Faultless
The Faultless test was a calibration test conducted in a mine cavity 3,200 feet beneath the Hot Creek Valley near Tonopah, Nevada, with a yield of around 1 megaton. This test was conducted to see if the land was fit for testing a 5 megaton thermonuclear warhead for the Spartan missile. The test failed because of the large degree of faulting that resulted in the area around the test. It was decided that the land was unfit for multi-megaton nuclear tests, so a similar calibration test was conducted at Amchitka Island, Alaska, in the fall of 1969 during Operation Mandrel.
Table of detonations
The United States's Crosstie nuclear test series was a group of 48 nuclear tests conducted in 1967-1968. These tests followed the Operation Latchkey series and preceded the Operation Bowline series.