I READ WITH GREAT INTER est “The Atomic Cannon” (by James Lament, Summer 2005). My first active-duty assignment after I’d been commissioned a second lieutenant in the Army Corps of Engineers was to carry out simulated nuclear explosions. This was in the summer of 1958 at Fort Knox, Kentucky. The purpose was to show groups of VIP military personnel and congressmen how tactical nuclear weapons could be used with an armored division on the battlefield. A large grandstand held the dignitaries in front of an open field that extended for miles. The highlight of the program was a mad minute when all the armored division’s firepower was directed in front of the grandstand, with tanks advancing in the field, along with overhead artillery explosions.
A simulated nuclear explosion about a mile from the grandstand was the climax of the show. A glowing, swirling, orange fireball about 40 feet in diameter slowly rose hundreds of feet into a cloud of white smoke, leaving a glow and a mushroom cloud very similar to the photograph in the article. A 155 howitzer cannon in front of the grandstand was said to be capable of firing the atomic shell. I guess that by 1958 an atomic warhead could fit in that cannon.
The plans and formula for the simulated nuclear explosion were given to me, and I had our engineering company prepare it. The basic ingredient was seven 55-gallon drums of napalm, arranged in a large circle. Underneath each drum was an explosive charge that faced upward to make the fireball rise. Cases of white phosphorus grenades were placed in the circle and packed with TNT charges to generate white smoke for the mushroom cloud. A 200pound TNT noise charge was also included. All the explosives were wired to a detonating device in an armored personal carrier in a ravine at a safe distance. During the demonstration I was positioned in a control tower at the back of the grandstand with radio contact with the detonating personnel. On cue with the script I sent the radio command to set off the explosion. It was spectacular, nearly breaking the windows in the control tower, which was a mile away from the blast.
I don’t know if this experience shaped my career, but I devoted 36 years of engineering to the peaceful use of nuclear power.
Noel P. Grimm
MONROEVILLE, PA.
