1953 Soviet nuclear tests
| 1953 | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Country | Soviet Union |
| Test site | Ground Zero, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan |
| Period | 1953 |
| Number of tests | 5 |
| Test type | air drop, tower |
| Max. yield | 400 kilotonnes of TNT (1,700 TJ) |
| Test series chronology | |
The Soviet Union's 1953 nuclear test series was a group of 5 nuclear tests conducted in 1953. These tests followed the 1949-51 Soviet nuclear tests series and preceded the 1954 Soviet nuclear tests series.
| Name | Date time (UT) | Local time zone | Location | Elevation + height | Delivery, Purpose |
Device | Yield | Fallout | References | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Usilennaya (reinforced?) (Joe 4) | 12 August 1953 | ALMT (6 hrs) |
Ground Zero, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan 50°26′17″N 77°48′51″E / 50.437991°N 77.814119°E | 279 m (915 ft) + 30 m (98 ft) | tower shot, weapons development |
RDS-6s | 400 kt | aka RDS-6s. First thermonuclear explosion. Used "sloika" Layer-cake method, where primary is wrapped in shells of lithium and tamper. It worked, but could not be scaled up to megaton yields. | ||
| 5 Tatyana (Joe 5) | 23 August 1953 02:00:?? | ALMT (6 hrs) |
Ground Zero, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan ~ 50°24′N 77°48′E / 50.4°N 77.8°E | 289 m (948 ft) + 600 m (2,000 ft) | air drop, weapons development |
RDS-4 | 28 kt | Test of first production tactical weapon, used on Tu-4 and Tu-16 jets. | ||
| 6 (Joe 6) | 3 September 1953 | ALMT (6 hrs) |
Ground Zero, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan ~ 50°24′N 77°48′E / 50.4°N 77.8°E | 280 m (920 ft) + 255 m (837 ft) | air drop, weapons development |
5.8 kt | ||||
| 7 | 8 September 1953 | ALMT (6 hrs) |
Ground Zero, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan ~ 50°24′N 77°48′E / 50.4°N 77.8°E | 280 m (920 ft) + 220 m (720 ft) | air drop, weapons development |
1.6 kt | ||||
| 8 (Joe 7) | 10 September 1953 | ALMT (6 hrs) |
Ground Zero, Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan ~ 50°24′N 77°48′E / 50.4°N 77.8°E | 280 m (920 ft) + 260 m (850 ft) | air drop, weapons development |
4.9 kt |