National Park Service The Archeology of the Atomic Bomb

A Submerged Cultural Resources Assessment of the Sunken Fleet of Operation Crossroads at Bikini and Kwajalein Atoll Lagoons



TABLE OF CONTENTS

COVER

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FOREWORD

Secretary of the Interior, Manuel Lujan, Jr.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

CHAPTER ONE: Introduction

Daniel J. Lenihan

Project Mandate and Background

Methodology

Activities



CHAPTER TWO: Operation Crossroads

James P. Delgado

The Concept of a Naval Test Evolves

Preparing for the Tests

The Able Test

The Baker Test

Decontamination Efforts

The Legacy of Crossroads

The 1947 Scientific Resurvey



CHAPTER THREE: Ship's Histories for the Sunken Vessels

James P. Delgado

USS Saratoga

USS Arkansas

HIJMS Nagato

HIJMS Sakawa

USS Prinz Eugen

USS Anderson

USS Lamson

USS Apogon

USS Pilotfish

USS Gilliam

USS Carlisle

ARDC-13

YO-160

LCT-414, 812, 1114, 1175, and 1237



CHAPTER FOUR: Site Descriptions

James P. Delgado and Larry E. Murphy

Introduction

Reconstructing the Nuclear Detonations

Site Descriptions: Vessels Lost During the Able Test

USS Gilliam

USS Carlisle

Site Descriptions: Vessels Lost During the Baker Test

USS Arkansas

USS Saratoga

USS Pilotfish

USS Apogon

YO-160

HIJMS Nagato

LCT-1175

Site Descriptions: Vessels Lost After the Test

USS Prinz Eugen

Final Observations



CHAPTER FIVE: The Significance of the Sunken Vessels of Operation Crossroads

James P. Delgado

Monuments and Memorials to the Dawn of the Atomic Age

Insuring the Navy's Survival in the Age of the Bomb

A Demonstration of Wealth and Power

Crossroads as a Spectacle and Demonstration

Learning to Live with the Bomb

The Reality of the Bomb: Radioactive Fears

Crossroads at the Bottom of the Sea

Confronting the Atomic Age



CHAPTER SIX: Nuclear Park Potential

Daniel J. Lenihan

Precedent

Park Appeal

Park Protection

Interpretive/Educational Devices

Diving Safety/Liability

Special Diving Hazards: Explosives, Radiation

Environmental Hazards Posed by Ships

Mooring Systems

Conclusions and Recommendations



APPENDIX I: Target Vessels at Bikini and Their Disposition

APPENDIX II: Relics of Operation Crossroads

APPENDIX III: Estimates of Radiological Dose at Bikini (W. L. Robison, 1990)

APPENDIX IV: Archeological Site Record Forms for the Documented Shipwrecks

BIBLIOGRAPHY

SUBMERGED CULTURAL RESOURCES UNIT REPORT AND PUBLICATION SERIES





LIST OF FIGURES

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX