Operation DOMINIC I

Note: For information related to claims, call the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) at 800-827-1000 or 

the Department of Justice (DOJ) at 800-729-7327. For all other information, call the Nuclear Test 

Personnel Review (NTPR) Program at 800-462-3683.

Operation DOMINIC I was a series of 36 atmospheric nuclear detonations conducted in the Pacific Ocean from 

April 25 to December 31, 1962. These detonations are listed on the accompanying table. Along with the 

continental DOMINIC II tests, these were the last atmospheric nuclear tests conducted by the United States.

Historical Background

Most of the DOMINIC I test shots were detonated in the air after being dropped from a B-52 bomber. Twentyfour of the airdrops took place from April 25 through July 11 over the ocean just south of Christmas Island, a 

United Kingdom possession located 1,200 nautical miles (nmi) (2,224 kilometers [km]) south of Honolulu, 

Hawaii. Five more airdrops were detonated in October over the open ocean in the vicinity of Johnston Island, 

a United States possession 780 nmi (1,445 km) west-southwest of Honolulu. These tests were conducted for 

the purpose of weapon development. Five high-altitude bursts (up to 400 km) were lofted by rockets from 

Johnston Island and were designated the FISHBOWL tests. These tests were for the purpose of studying the 

effects of nuclear detonations as defensive weapons against ballistic missiles. In addition, the Navy conducted 

two nuclear tests in the open ocean on May 4 about 435 nmi (806 km) east of Christmas Island and on May 

11, 370 nmi (686 km) southwest of San Diego, California. The first, FRIGATE BIRD, was a missile-launched 

airburst, a proof test of the Polaris weapon system launched from the submarine USS ETHAN ALLEN 

(SSBN 608). The second, SWORDFISH, was the test of the Navy ASROC system, a rocket-launched 

antisubmarine nuclear depth charge.

As in previous test series in the Pacific, a joint military and civilian organization conducted these tests, Joint 

Task Force Eight (JTF 8). JTF 8 was made up of military personnel from all the services and civilians from the 

Department of Defense (DOD), the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), the U.S. Public Health Service, and 

contractor organizations. Commander JTF 8 (CJTF 8) was appointed by the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), and 

reported to the AEC as well as the JCS.

Radiation Protection Standards

CJTF 8 was assigned overall responsibility for radiation safety. The Radsafe Branch, located organizationally 

in the Operations and Plans Office of Headquarters JTF 8, was responsible for overall control of monitoring 

and decontamination, issuing radiological safety supplies and equipment, maintaining radiac instruments, 

procuring all film badges, developing and interpreting exposed badges, and maintaining cumulative radiation 

exposure records for everyone who was badged. These records were compiled and are extant in a document 

referred to as the Consolidated List of Exposures. The Radsafe Branch also managed an extensive offsite 

radiation surveillance network on 17 remote islands throughout the Pacific Ocean. Task groups, which were 

subordinate to JTF 8, had command responsibility for radiological safety within their organizations.
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The maximum permissible exposure (MPE) for personnel who participated in DOMINIC I was 

3.0 roentgens (R) gamma per consecutive 13-week period, with a maximum of 5 R for the calendar year. 

Individuals who were 18 years old could accrue no more than 1.25 R per 13-week period during their 

nineteenth year. No individual who had not reached his eighteenth birthday by May 1, 1962, could be 

occupationally exposed to radiation. A special MPE of 20 R gamma was authorized for the operational period 

for aircrews, maintenance crews, and recovery crews associated with air-sampling aircraft.

Film badges were issued to personnel stationed on Christmas and Johnston Islands and those in Navy ships 

directly involved with the tests. Persons on remote islands monitoring for radiation or conducting experiments 

were not badged. The majority of the approximately 25,000 participants in DOMINIC I were badged. Badges 

were issued for extended periods to ensure that all possible exposure was recorded.

Because all but one of the shots were airbursts, there was little or no fallout and no residual radiation around 

surface zero. Although SWORDFISH (the underwater shot) produced no fallout, it did create a short-lived 

radioactive base surge consisting of radioactive water droplets and a pool of radioactive water centered at

surface zero. The base surge reached its largest upwind and crosswind distance of approximately 2,000 yards 

about 110 seconds after the shot. At that time, it extended about 2,500 yards downwind. The base surge 

remained visible for about 10 minutes but persisted as an invisible aerosol for at least 20 minutes. The pool of 

radioactive water was defined by the margins of a disk-shaped foam patch on the ocean surface. The foam 

patch, which became visible on the surface as the base surge dispersed and evaporated, had a radius of 

about 2,000 yards, approximately the same as the base surge except for its downwind extension. The 

radioactive pool dispersed after a few days. Aside from USS SIOUX (ATF 75), a ship tasked with sampling the 

pool of radioactive water, the closest ship was USS BAUSELL (DD 845) at 2,200 yards upwind from surface 

zero. BAUSELL, however, did not enter the radioactive pool or encounter the base surge.

Because stringent personnel safety measures were enforced during the cleanup after the launch pad explosion 

of BLUEGILL PRIME at Johnston Island, no one received significant contamination from the accident.

Radiation Doses at Operation DOMINIC I 

Approximately 5 percent (some 1,200 personnel) of DOMINIC I participants had doses greater than 0.5 rem∗

Approximately 230 personnel had doses greater than 2.0 rem, with some 40 personnel receiving doses over 

5.0 rem. Included in this group are 20 personnel with doses greater than 10.0 rem; the highest total dose for 

the entire operation was 17.68 rem.

It is well documented that many badges worn by personnel during DOMINIC I were defectively sealed, which 

resulted in damage to the films from moisture, light, and heat. Film damage typically caused optical density 

(darkening) in addition to that from radiation, which was, nonetheless, historically attributed to radiation. A 

reevaluation of 1,349 DOMINIC I film badges in 1979-1980 showed that 45 percent exhibited some damage 

related to light, heat, and age due to defective wax seals. Of the badges that showed apparent readings over 

0.4 rem, 98 percent were observed to have suffered environmental damage. Subsequent research of 

radiological data from DOMINIC I indicates that only the following categories of participants had the potential 

for radiation exposure:

 ∗ A rem is a radiation protection unit of measure that quantifies the risk of biological effects resulting from exposure to 

ionizing radiation. Ionizing radiation is any radiation (gamma, x-ray, beta, neutron, or alpha) capable of displacing 

electrons from atoms or molecules, thereby producing ions. According to the National Council on Radiation Protection 

and Measurements (NCRP, Report No. 160, Table 1.1), the general U.S. population receives about 0.62 rem per year 

from natural background radiation sources (radon, cosmic rays, and rocks) and man-made radiation sources (medical 

diagnostic x-rays and consumer products). As a basis of comparison, a standard diagnostic chest x-ray delivers a 

radiation dose of about 0.02 rem.
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• Crewmembers of USS SIOUX

• Nuclear cloud sampler aircrews or associated ground crewmembers

• Personnel involved in the recovery and handling of radioactive instrumented pods, rocket nose cones, 

or any other contaminated material

• Radiation Safety monitors.

The totals of reconstructed and film badge doses for DOMINIC I participants are depicted below.

For more information, see the report “Operation DOMINIC I 1962” (DNA 6040F), available online at

https://www.dtra.mil/DTRA-Mission/Reference-Documents/NTPR-Info/.

September 2021
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Summary of Operation DOMINIC I Nuclear Weapons Tests (1962)a

Shot Local Date Location Burst Type Yield (kiloton)b

ADOBE Apr 25 Christmas Island Airdrop 190

AZTEC Apr 27 Christmas Island Airdrop 410

ARKANSAS May 2 Christmas Island Airdrop 1090

QUESTA May 4 Christmas Island Airdrop 670

FRIGATE BIRD May 6 500 nmi ENE 

Christmas Island

Polaris Airburst 200 to 1000

YUKON May 8 Christmas Island Airdrop 100

MESILLA May 9 Christmas Island Airdrop 100

MUSKEGON May 11 Christmas Island Airdrop 50

SWORDFISH May 11 370 nmi WSW

San Diego

ASROC 

Underwater

Low (less than 20)

ENCINO May 12 Christmas Island Airdrop 500

SWANEE May 14 Christmas Island Airdrop 97

CHETCO May 19 Christmas Island Airdrop 73

TANANA May 25 Christmas Island Airdrop 2.6

NAMBE May 27 Christmas Island Airdrop 43

ALMA June 8 Christmas Island Airdrop 782

TRUCKEE Jun 9 Christmas Island Airdrop 210

YESO Jun 10 Christmas Island Airdrop 3000

HARLEM Jun 12 Christmas Island Airdrop 1200

RINCONADA Jun 15 Christmas Island Airdrop 800

DULCE Jun 17 Christmas Island Airdrop 52

PETIT Jun 19 Christmas Island Airdrop 2.2

OTOWI Jun 22 Christmas Island Airdrop 81.5

BIGHORN Jun 27 Christmas Island Airdrop 7650

BLUESTONE Jun 30 Christmas Island Airdrop 1270

STARFISH PRIME Jul 8 Johnston Island Rocket-400 km 1400

SUNSET Jul 10 Christmas Island Airdrop 1000

PAMLICO Jul 11 Christmas Island Airdrop 3880

ANDROSCOGGIN Oct 2 Johnston Island Airdrop 75

BUMPING Oct 6 Johnston Island Airdrop 11.3

CHAMA Oct 18 Johnston Island Airdrop 1590

CHECKMATE Oct 19 Johnston Island Rocket-10s km Low (less than 20)

BLUEGILL TRIPLE 

PRIME

Oct 25 Johnston Island Rocket-10s km Submegatonc

CALAMITY Oct 27 Johnston Island Airdrop 800

HOUSATONIC Oct 30 Johnston Island Airdrop 8300

KINGFISH Nov 1 Johnston Island Rocket-10s km Submegatonc

TIGHTROPE Nov 3 Johnston Island Rocket-10s km Low (less than 20)

a Source: United States Nuclear Tests, July 1945 through September 1992, DOE/NV-209 (Rev. 15), Dec 2000.

b One kiloton equals the approximate energy release of one thousand tons of TNT.

c Less than 1,000 kiloton but more than 200.