The Day We Lost the H-Bomb: Cold War, Hot Nukes, and the Worst Nuclear Weapons Disaster in History

138 “At first theThunderballaspects”: Richard Oulahan, “The Case of the Missing H-Bomb,” Life, February 25, 1966, p. 106A.

CHAPTER 11: THE FISHERMAN'S CATCH

139 One Sunday morning in February: The story of Simó's catch comes from author's interviews with Joe Ramirez, January 27, 2007, Red Moody, November 7, 2006, and Oliver Andersen, March 31, 2007; and from Commander Task Group 65.3, memo to Commander Task Force 65, “Report of Inshore Search, Identification and Recovery Unit,” March 13, 1966 (NHC), p. 26. There is some slight disagreement on the date of this incident, but sources agree that it happened sometime around February 10, 1966.

140 A Palomares schoolteacher:SAC Historical Study #109, p. 47.

140 Searchers were ordered to mark: Ibid., p. 99.

140 General Wilson asked the Sandia engineers: Information on the Sandia drop tests (“Operation Sunday”) comes from ibid., pp. 102–105; author's interview with William Caudle, January 22, 2004; and Memo, Robert L. McNeill to William N. Caudle, “Field Observation Operation Sunday,” February 15, 1966 (NNSA).

141 “severely restricted”: Memo, McNeill to Caudle, “Field Observation,” p. 5.

141 Maydew's airburst theory:SAC Historical Study #109, pp. 43–44.

141 Only Larry Messinger showed a positive result: Ibid., p. 44.

141 The Spanish vesselJuan de la Cosa: Ibid., p. 47.

141 Joe Ramirez also found a pharmacist: Joe Ramirez interview, January 27, 2007.

141 “This could only be considered as normal”:SAC Historical Study #109, p. 93.

CHAPTER 12: RADIOACTIVIDAD

143 Colonel White, the man in charge: Flora Lewis interview with Alton “Bud” White, undated (AFHRA), and Szulc, The Bombs of Palomares, pp. 147–149.

143 Dr. Wright Langham, a plutonium expert: The background on Langham is from Szulc, The Bombs of Palomares, pp. 145–147, and Lewis, One of Our H-Bombs, pp. 106–111.

144 Some of the urine samples:The Bombs of Palomares, pp. 153–154; Lewis, One of Our H-Bombs, pp. 109–111; SAC Historical Study #109, pp. 146–148.

144 Langham next tackled crop and animal worries:SAC Historical Study #109, pp. 155–156.

144 The tests, called Operation Roller Coaster: J. Newell Stannard, Radioactivity and Health, A History. Vol. 2: Environmental Aspects (Richland, Wash.: Pacific Northwest Laboratory, 1988), pp. 1193–1197, 1203–1207.

144 the major plutonium hazard had vanished: Paraphrased from Lewis, One of Our H-Bombs, p. 115.

144 He had used himself: Lewis, One of Our H-Bombs, p. 109.

144 “maximum permissible body burden”: Ibid., p. 110.

145 Current limits: E-mail, Andy Karam to author, December 10, 2007.

145 The maximum permissible air concentration: Lewis, One of Our H-Bombs, p.110.

145 an amount akin to a grain of salt: E-mail, Andy Karam to author, December 10, 2007.

145 has a half-life of 24,360 years:SAC Historical Study #109, p. 137.

145 Langham calculated how much soil: The soil remediation plan is discussed in Lewis, One of Our H-Bombs, pp. 115–120; Flora Lewis interview with Alton “Bud” White, undated (AFHRA); SAC Historical Study #109, pp. 160, 165–167, 171–173; and Place et al., Palomares Summary Report (Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M.: Field Command, Defense Nuclear Agency, Technology and Analysis Directorate, January 15, 1975), pp. 64–65. Unfortunately, official records list the contamination levels in counts per minute (CPM), a measurement that varies depending on the sensitivity of the instrument.

146 there had been at least twenty-eight nuclear accidents: “Narrative Summaries of Accidents Involving U.S. Nuclear Weapons 1950–1980,” undated (NNSA, FOIA). Accident summaries are paraphrased from this document.