page_title: Novaya Zemlya
section_title: Nuclear testing
hierarchical_section_title: Novaya Zemlya / History / Nuclear testing
context_page_description: Novaya Zemlya, also known as Nova Zembla, is an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean in northern Russia and the extreme northeast of Europe, the easternmost point of Europe lying at Cape Flissingsky on the Northern island. West of Novaya Zemlya is the Barents Sea, and to the east is the Kara Sea.
  Novaya Zemlya is composed of two main islands, the northern Severny Island and the southern Yuzhny Island, which are separated by the Matochkin Strait. Administratively, it is incorporated as Novaya Zemlya District, one of the twenty-one in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. Municipally, it is incorporated as Novaya Zemlya Urban Okrug.
  The population of Novaya Zemlya, as of the 2010 Census, was about 2,429, of which 1,972 resided in Belushya Guba, an urban settlement that is the administrative center of Novaya Zemlya District.
  The indigenous population consisted of about 50–300 Nenetses who subsisted mainly on fishing, trapping, reindeer herding, polar bear hunting and seal hunting. Natural resources include copper, lead, and zinc.
  Novaya Zemlya was a sensitive military area during the Cold War years, and parts of it are still used for airfields today.
context_section_description: In July 1954, Novaya Zemlya was designated the Novaya Zemlya Test Site, construction of which began in October and existed during much of the Cold War. "Zone A", Chyornaya Guba (70.7°N 54.6°E), was used in 1955–1962 and 1972–1975.  "Zone B", Matochkin Shar (73.4°N 54.9°E), was used for underground tests in 1964–1990.  "Zone C", Sukhoy Nos (73.7°N 54.0°E), was used in 1958–1961 and was the site of the 1961 test of the Tsar Bomba, the most powerful nuclear weapon ever detonated.
  Other tests occurred elsewhere throughout the islands, with an official testing range covering over half of the landmass. In September 1961, two propelled thermonuclear warheads were launched from Vorkuta Sovetsky and Salekhard to target areas on Novaya Zemlya. The launch rocket was subsequently deployed to Cuba.
  1963 saw the implementation of the Limited Test Ban Treaty which banned most atmospheric nuclear tests. The largest underground test in Novaya Zemlya took place on September 12, 1973, involving four nuclear devices of 4.2 megatons total yield. Although far smaller in blast power than the Tsar Bomba and other atmospheric tests, the confinement of the blasts underground led to pressures rivaling natural earthquakes. In the case of the September 12, 1973 test, a seismic magnitude of 6.97 on the Richter Scale was reached, setting off an 80 million ton avalanche that blocked two glacial streams and created a lake 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) in length.
  Over its history as a nuclear test site, Novaya Zemlya hosted 224 nuclear detonations with a total explosive energy equivalent to 265 megatons of TNT. For comparison, all explosives used in World War II, including the detonations of two US nuclear bombs, amounted to only two megatons.
  In 1988–1989, glasnost helped make the Novaya Zemlya testing activities public knowledge, and in 1990 Greenpeace activists staged a protest at the site. The last nuclear test explosion was in 1990 (also the last for the entire Soviet Union and Russia). The Ministry for Atomic Energy has performed a series of subcritical underwater nuclear experiments near Matochkin Shar each autumn since 1998. These tests reportedly involve up to 100 grams (3.5 oz) of weapons-grade plutonium.
  In October 2012, it was reported that Russia would resume subcritical nuclear testing at "Zone B". In Spring 2013, construction of what would become a new tunnel and four buildings was initiated near the Severny settlement, 3 km west-northwest to the Mount Lazarev.
caption: Novaya Zemlya Test Site boundaries and facilities
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