The first US nuclear test caused more radioactive fallout than scientists expected
The level of radioactive fallout caused by the first Trinity atomic bomb test in the United States in 1945 was higher than scientists had anticipated, prompting the need to reassess the impact of radioactive contamination on the population, according to a report by a group of researchers from Princeton University and the University of Colorado at Boulder.
The first test of Trinity technology took place in New Mexico on 16 July 1945. According to the report, nuclear weapons tests since 1945 have resulted in “unrestrained releases of radioactive materials into the environment.”
“We estimate that there are locations in New Mexico and other states, including on federally recognised tribal lands, where radionuclide deposition has reached higher levels than those counties addressed in the US Radiation Exposure Compensation Act. This analysis lays the foundation for a more focused reassessment of contamination and its impact on the public,” the report said.
According to the published report, radioactive substances spread across 46 US states over 10 days, with New Mexico, where the test was conducted, being the most severely affected. Significant fallout was also recorded in the states of Idaho, Arizona, Wyoming, Colorado, Colorado, Nevada and Utah.
As scientists note, radioactive fallout from the test also reached Mexico and Lake Crawford in the Canadian province of Ontario.
As the New York Times notes, the findings could be used by advocates of increasing the number of people eligible to receive compensation from the federal government for possible exposure to radiation from atmospheric nuclear explosions.
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