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starfish prime

starfish prime

Operation Dominic I and II - Starfish Prime Part 1 1962

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Starfish Prime was a high-altitude nuclear test conducted by the United States of America on July 9, 1962, a joint effort of the Defense Atomic Support Agency (DASA) and the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC). Launched via a Thor rocket and carrying a W49 thermonuclear warhead (manufactured by Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory) and a Mk. 4 reentry vehicle, the explosion took place 400 kilometers (250 miles) above Johnston Island in the Pacific Ocean. It was part of Operation Dominic. With the test taking place in such a high altitude, it was one of the five tests conducted by the USA in outer space as defined by the FAI. It produced a yield of 1.4 megatons of TNT.