One’s first thoughts when hearing about a nuclear bomb site usually include making sure you stay far, far away. Many do not know that Mississippi is home to two nuclear bomb tests. A result of the only atomic bomb tests on U.S. Soil east of the Mississippi River, the site is a 1,470-acre tract of land in the Piney Woods of southwest Lamar County, Mississippi, 21 miles southwest of Hattiesburg. Also called the Tatum Salt Dome Test Site, it is commonly referred to as the Salmon Site.
In the early to mid-1960s, Cold War tensions were high between the U.S. and the former Soviet Union, and both countries had stockpiled tens of thousands of nuclear devices. A Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was signed on August 5, 1963, between the two countries to stop testing nuclear devices on land or underwater, but the treaty did not cover underground testing. It was unknown whether seismographs could reliably detect underground tests, so the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission picked Baxterville, Mississippi, to conduct testing. The area was chosen because it sits atop the Tatum Salt Dome, a large, underground salt dome, and it was geologically similar to the areas where the Soviet Union was testing their nuclear devices.
Two bombs were detonated. In October 1964, a 5.3-kiloton explosion, known as the “Salmon” explosion, carved a cavity out of the salt some 2,700 feet underground. The Salmon bomb was roughly a third of the size of the one dropped on Hiroshima in 1945. Then, in December 1966, the second bomb was detonated. The 0.38-kiloton explosion dubbed the “Sterling” bomb was then set off inside the resulting cavity from the Salmon explosion.
These tests, which were part of Project Dribble, were conducted to determine whether a nation could camouflage the shock wave from a nuclear explosion by setting it off in an underground cavern. By creating a cavity with the first bomb, it was believed that the second, smaller bomb could be detonated without detection on the surface. These tests proved the technique could not wholly conceal a bomb test from the sensors set up by arms control treaties.
A documentary of the test, Atomic Journey: Mississippi, contains archive footage. According to the film, 3.5 months after testing, a camera and thermometer were lowered into the cavity, and the temperature inside the salt dome still registered around 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
While many are concerned about long-term effects and possible leakage, the Salmon Site remains a crucial area. The site is monitored and deserves the time and effort needed to preserve this area for present and future generations. As with anything that strikes fear in people, education and solid explanations often can calm those fears.
Even with the concerns surrounding this area, there are many ways this historical event and the land it was held on can continue to teach us.
James L. Cummins is executive director of Wildlife Mississippi, a non-profit conservation organization founded to conserve, restore, and enhance fish, wildlife, and plant resources throughout Mississippi. Their website is www.wildlifemiss.org.
