"The Pluto Yard"
USA /
Hawaii /
Kekaha /
World
/ USA
/ Hawaii
/ Kekaha
World / United States Minor Outlying Islands
military, nuclear testing area, missile launch facility
Former launch emplacement site 1&2 where the THOR missile with warhead blew up in 1962. Known as the "The Pluto Yard" for obvious reasons :
A. The high altitude THOR launched test, dubbed Starfish, was scheduled for 20 June 1962. The rocket with the 1.45 Mt Starfish device (W-49 warhead and the MK-4 RV) on it's nose was launched that evening but the THOR missile engine cut out only 59 seconds after launch. The range safety officer sent the destruct signal 65 seconds after launch, and the missile was destroyed at approximately 10.6 km. The warhead high explosive detonated in 1-point safe fashion, destroying the warhead without producing nuclear yield. Large pieces of the missile fell back on Johnston Island, and more wreckage along with plutonium contamination was found on nearby Sand Island.
B. Bluegill Prime, the second attempt to launch the payload which failed last time was scheduled for 23:15 (local) on 25 July. It too was a genuine disaster. The THOR missile was carrying one pod, two re-entry vehicles (all heavily instrumented) and the warhead. The missile engine malfunctioned immediately after ignition, and the range safety officer fired the destruct system while the missile was still on the launch pad. An eyewitness remembers the night, "I got a real sick feeling knowing that there was a fully active A-bomb on the rocket. It gave a new meaning to 'Put your head between your legs and kiss your ass good-bye.' I monitored the count down and opened the outside hatch (against orders - but what the hell, if it blew who would know) when we heard the abort code. Hell of a fire ball!" The Johnston Island launch complex was demolished. This proved the wisdom of evacuating all non-essential personnel from the island. According to the Los Angeles Times, "There was no release of radiation and no personnel were injured." True the warhead did not detonate but when the rocket was destroyed, the warhead was also destroyed and plutonium was scattered all over Johnston Island.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmRXqGY4J9k
A. The high altitude THOR launched test, dubbed Starfish, was scheduled for 20 June 1962. The rocket with the 1.45 Mt Starfish device (W-49 warhead and the MK-4 RV) on it's nose was launched that evening but the THOR missile engine cut out only 59 seconds after launch. The range safety officer sent the destruct signal 65 seconds after launch, and the missile was destroyed at approximately 10.6 km. The warhead high explosive detonated in 1-point safe fashion, destroying the warhead without producing nuclear yield. Large pieces of the missile fell back on Johnston Island, and more wreckage along with plutonium contamination was found on nearby Sand Island.
B. Bluegill Prime, the second attempt to launch the payload which failed last time was scheduled for 23:15 (local) on 25 July. It too was a genuine disaster. The THOR missile was carrying one pod, two re-entry vehicles (all heavily instrumented) and the warhead. The missile engine malfunctioned immediately after ignition, and the range safety officer fired the destruct system while the missile was still on the launch pad. An eyewitness remembers the night, "I got a real sick feeling knowing that there was a fully active A-bomb on the rocket. It gave a new meaning to 'Put your head between your legs and kiss your ass good-bye.' I monitored the count down and opened the outside hatch (against orders - but what the hell, if it blew who would know) when we heard the abort code. Hell of a fire ball!" The Johnston Island launch complex was demolished. This proved the wisdom of evacuating all non-essential personnel from the island. According to the Los Angeles Times, "There was no release of radiation and no personnel were injured." True the warhead did not detonate but when the rocket was destroyed, the warhead was also destroyed and plutonium was scattered all over Johnston Island.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmRXqGY4J9k
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PGM-17_Thor
Nearby cities:
Coordinates: 16°43'51"N 169°32'9"W
- Makua Military Reservation 1303 km
- Naval Magazine Pearl Harbor (a.k.a. Naval Magazine Lualualei) 1308 km
- Former Naval Air Station Barbers Point 1308 km
- Schofield Barracks Military Reservation 1310 km
- Pearl Harbor 1320 km
- Joint Base Pearl Harbor – Hickam (IATA: HIK – ICAO: PHIK) 1321 km
- East Range Military Training Area 1322 km
- Ewa Forest Reserve - Poamoho Section/Poamoho Training Area 1325 km
- Kawailoa Military Training Area 1326 km
- Fort Shafter 1329 km
- Runway 5/23 (closed) 0.3 km
- Johnston Atoll Airport 0.3 km
- Johnston Island 0.3 km
- Scientific Row 0.8 km
- Red Hat Storage Area 0.9 km
- Quarry 3.9 km
- Akau Island (a.k.a. "North Island") 4 km
- Quarry 5.4 km
- Johnston Atoll 9 km
- Starfish Prime 31 km
Comments