On July 9, 1962, large crowds gathered on the beaches of Honolulu, Hawaii, to watch the United States (US) detonate a nuclear bomb in outer space. Why did the US do it?
Known as Starfish Prime, the explosion was part of a series of high-altitude nuclear tests known as 'Operation Fishbowl'.
Five nuclear devices were launched during the test, with Starfish being the largest at around 1.4 megatons (equivalent to the energy release of 1.4 million tons of TNT detonated all at once).
After the bomb was detonated about 400 kilometers above Johnston Island in the Pacific Ocean, aurorae were visible in the sky as electronic equipment began to fail.
"In Kwaialein, 1,400 miles to the west, thick clouds extending the eastern horizon to a height of 5 or 8 degrees," said an eyewitness to the event, as recorded in a military report, quoted from IFL Science, Sunday (17/7/2022).
At 9 a.m. local time, a brilliant white flash of burning clouds quickly turned into a green ball that extended from the beam extending into the clear sky above the overcast sky.
From its surface emerge large white spokes, resembling cirro-stratus clouds, which rise to 40 degrees above the horizon in a sweeping arc turning downward towards the poles and disappear within seconds to be replaced by rings, like spectacular concentric rings moving out of the explosion. with a tremendous initial speed, and finally stopped when the outer ring was 50 degrees overhead.
"They did not disappear but persisted in a frozen state of silence," the report said.
As the greenish light turns purple and begins to fade at the point of explosion, a bright red glow begins to develop on the horizon at 50 degrees north east and simultaneously 50 degrees south east extends inward and upward, until the entire eastern sky is a dull red semicircle that burned 100 degrees north to south, and half way to the top obliterated some of the smaller stars. This state, interspersed with a magnificent white rainbow, lasted no less than seven minutes.
This test was designed in part to test the effect on Earth's magnetic field, and whether a nuclear explosion in space could be used as a weapon against the Soviet Union.
They were surprised to find that it was effective at shutting down several satellites, including those launched the day after the test that were exposed to higher-than-expected radiation levels.
"Several electronic and electrical systems in the Hawaiian Islands, 1,400 kilometers away, were affected by this test, causing street lighting system failure, circuit breaker blocking, triggering burglar alarms, and damage to telecommunications relay facilities," the report noted in 2012.
What is important about electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attacks is that one or more high-altitude nuclear explosions can produce an EMP effect that has the potential to disrupt or damage electronic and electrical systems in most of the US, almost simultaneously, at a time determined by the adversary.
The effect of the test, lasted longer than the appearance of the beautiful aurora. The artificial radiation belt is created by explosions, with higher levels of the naturally occurring Van Allen belt, lasting for several years. It's terrible!