Operation DOMINIC II

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 II was an atmospheric nuclear test series conducted by the Atomic Energy 

Commission (AEC) at the Nevada Test Site (NTS) from July 7 to 17, 1962. The operation consisted of four 

low-yield shots, three of which were near-surface detonations and one a tower shot. One of the near-surface 

shots was fired from a DAVY CROCKETT rocket launcher as part of Exercise IVY FLATS, the only military 

training exercise conducted at DOMINIC II. An estimated 3,900 Department of Defense (DOD) personnel 

participated in Exercise IVY FLATS, scientific and diagnostic tests, and support activities. The series was 

intended to provide information on weapons effects and to test the effectiveness of the DAVY CROCKETT 

weapon system under simulated tactical conditions. Also known by the DOD code name of Operation 

SUNBEAM, DOMINIC II was the continental phase of DOMINIC I, the atmospheric nuclear test series 

conducted at the Pacific Proving Ground from April to November 1962.

Historical Background

Approximately 1,000 Sixth Army military personnel at DOMINIC II participated in Exercise IVY FLATS, which 

was sponsored by the Department of the Army and conducted at Shot LITTLE FELLER I. The remaining DOD

personnel took part in scientific tests, air support activities, or administrative support activities for DOMINIC II.

Among the Sixth Army participants in Exercise IVY FLATS were approximately 550 maneuver troops drawn 

primarily from the 4th Infantry Division and approximately 210 Sixth Army personnel who provided support 

services. Also present were about 400 military and civilian observers. Other military participants included 

approximately 80 members of the Control, Safety, and Evaluation Group. Some of these personnel 

accompanied the task force on its maneuver, while others monitored the maneuver from the command post.

The scientific tests at DOMINIC II were supervised by the Defense Atomic Support Agency (DASA) Weapons 

Effects Test Group. These tests were designed to collect information on weapons effects, such as the 

electromagnetic pulse, prompt and residual radiation, and thermal radiation. The experiments also tested the 

effects of low-yield detonations on structures and on aircraft in flight. Personnel from the following 

organizations participated in these tests:

• Air Force Special Weapons Center

• Army Engineer Research and Development Laboratories 

• Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station

• Army Nuclear Defense Laboratory

• Army Signal Research and Development Laboratories

• Ballistic Research Laboratories (Army)
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• David Taylor Model Basin (Navy)

• Harry Diamond Laboratories

• Naval Missile Center.

Air support activities at DOMINIC II included cloud sampling, courier missions, aerial surveys of terrain, and 

cloud tracking. The Air Force Special Weapons Center (AFSWC) provided most of these air support services. 

Specific AFSWC units participating were the AFSWC Nuclear Test Directorate, the Special Projects Division, 

and the 4900th Air Base Group. The following other Air Force units provided support to AFSWC:

• The 1211th Test Squadron (Sampling), Military Air Transport Service, performed cloud sampling.

• The 4520th Combat Crew Training Wing, Tactical Air Command, provided support services at Indian 

Springs Air Force Base (AFB) and Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.

• The 55th Weather Reconnaissance Squadron supplied an aircraft and crew for high-altitude cloud 

tracking.

• The Aeronautical Systems Division, Air Force Systems Command, provided air support for technical 

projects.

Most of the air support activities were staged from Indian Springs Air Force Base, 30 kilometers east of Camp 

Mercury (the NTS base camp). DOD personnel also assisted the AEC Test Manager in planning, coordinating, 

and executing the DOMINIC II tests. These personnel were responsible for overseeing DOD technical and 

military planning objectives in the operation.

The test involving the largest number of DOD participants was Shot LITTLE FELLER I, the fourth DOMINIC II 

test. LITTLE FELLER I was a stockpile DAVY CROCKETT tactical weapon, fired as part of Exercise IVY 

FLATS. This training exercise consisted of an observer program and a troop maneuver. Observers in 

bleachers about 3.5 kilometers southwest of ground zero wore protective goggles while they watched the 

detonation. Maneuver troops forward of the observation site were in trenches during the detonation. Five 

personnel from the IVY FLATS maneuver task force launched the weapon from a rocket launcher mounted on 

an armored personnel carrier. LITTLE FELLER I detonated on target, 2,853 meters from the firing position. 

After the initial radiation surveys were completed, the IVY FLATS troops entered their vehicles and moved into 

the shot area, where they spent about 50 minutes conducting maneuvers.

Military personnel at Shot LITTLE FELLER I also participated in weapons effects tests, collecting data on blast, 

shock, and fallout effects and in air support activities, including cloud sampling and cloud tracking.

The DOMINIC II test involving the largest number of DOD projects was Shot SMALL BOY. Originally 

scheduled for 31 DOD projects, the shot ultimately included 63 DOD projects, as well as 4 Civil Effects and 

31 AEC projects. Shot SMALL BOY had initially been planned as the one detonation of Operation DOMINIC II. 

The primary purpose of the detonation was to provide information on electromagnetic pulse effects. 

Headquarters, DASA, consequently assigned Harry Diamond Laboratories, which had collected 

electromagnetic pulse data at Operation PLUMBBOB (1957), to provide overall technical direction for DOD

programs. Program 6, Electromagnetic Effects, was given priority over the other programs, which were 

conducted according to strict guidelines designed to assure noninterference with Program 6 objectives.

Besides participating in the 63 DOD projects, military personnel took part in air-support activities. As at the 

other DOMINIC II shots, these activities included cloud-sampling and cloud-tracking missions.
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Summary of Operation DOMINIC II Nuclear Weapons Tests

The four DOMINIC II tests are summarized in the following table. The figure shows the ground zeros of the 

four shots.

Summary of Operation DOMINIC II Nuclear Weapons Tests (1962)

a

Shot LITTLE FELLER II JOHNIE BOY SMALL BOY LETTER FELLER I

Sponsor DOD DOD DOD DOD

Date Jul 7 Jul 11 Jul 14 Jul 17

Local Time noon 9:45 a.m. 11:30 a.m. 10 a.m.

NTS Location Area 18 Area 18 Area 5 Area 18

Type of Detonation Near Surface Near Surface Surface (Tower) Near Surface

Height of Burst (Feet)b 3 -2 10 3

Yield (kilotons)c Low 0.5 Low Low

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

b Altitudes are measured from mean sea level, while heights are measured from the ground. All vertical distances are in 

feet.

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

Radiation Protection Standards

The AEC was responsible for onsite and offsite radiological safety during DOMINIC II. The AEC 

recommended a gamma exposure limit of 3 rem∗ per 13-week period for most participants but authorized the 

pilots conducting cloud sampling missions to receive up to 3.9 rem per 13-week period because their mission 

required them to penetrate the clouds.

The Test Manager was responsible for implementing the radiological safety procedures for the test 

organization, which included the Weapons Effects Test Group, AFSWC, and, at Shot LITTLE FELLER I, the 

IVY FLATS organization. Personnel from the Reynolds Electrical and Engineering Company (REECo) 

performed the radiological safety activities onsite and at Indian Springs AFB. These activities included:

• Monitoring radiation areas and controlling access into these areas

• Plotting isointensity maps of the shot areas

• Issuing radiation detection instruments, anti-contamination clothing, and equipment to personnel 

entering radiation areas

• Providing film badges and maintaining exposure records for all personnel

• Decontaminating personnel, vehicles, and equipment.

At Shot LITTLE FELLER I, personnel from the IVY FLATS Radiological Safety Control Section, working within 

the REECo radiological safety program, conducted similar activities for Exercise IVY FLATS participants.

 ∗ 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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U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) personnel performed offsite monitoring under the supervision of the 

Offsite Radiological Control Officer. Their activities included:

• Assessing offsite radiation

• Collecting data on fallout patterns

• Monitoring air, water, and milk

• Preparing reports, maps, and records that described the results of the monitoring and data collection.

In addition to these ground monitoring activities, the USPHS conducted aerial surveys of offsite areas.

Air Force personnel from the 1211th Test Squadron (Sampling) assisted REECo in monitoring and, as 

necessary, decontaminating aircrews and aircraft participating in cloud-sampling missions at DOMINIC II. 

These activities took place at Indian Springs AFB.

Radiation Doses at Operation DOMINIC II

All of the DOD participants received less than 5 rem during DOMINIC II. Of those who received more than 

2 rem, most (about 40) were Army personnel. Available film badge data are shown below. 

For more information, see the report “Operation DOMINIC II,” (DNA 6027F), available online at

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

September 2021
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