Nuclear Shell Fired: Cold War Arms Race Escalates
The United States detonated a 15-kiloton nuclear artillery shell, codenamed "Grable," at the Nevada Test Site on May 25, 1953, as part of Operation Upshot-Knothole. The shell was fired from a 280mm M65 atomic cannon (nicknamed "Atomic Annie") and detonated 524 feet above the ground after traveling 7 miles. The test proved that tactical nuclear weapons could be delivered by conventional artillery, a concept that terrified Soviet military planners and accelerated the arms race. The M65 weighed 83 tons and required two tractors to move, making it impractical for battlefield use. Twenty M65 cannons were deployed to Europe and Korea between 1953 and 1963 before being replaced by more portable nuclear delivery systems. The Grable test was the only time a nuclear projectile was fired from a cannon.
May 25, 1953
73 years ago
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