Exercise Desert Rock I was conducted at Shot DOG, and Exercises Desert
Rock II and III at Shots SUGAR and UNCLE, respectively.
The troop exercises
were the first staged by the Armed Forces during continental nuclear weapons
testing.
The Desert Rock exercises included observer programs, tactical
maneuvers, and damage effects tests.
Observer programs, conducted at DOG,
SUGAR, and UNCLE, generally involved briefings on nuclear weapons effects,
observation of the nuclear detonation, and a subsequent tour of a display of
military equipment exposed to the detonation.
Tactical maneuvers, conducted
after DOG, were designed both to train troops and to test military tactics.
Damage effects tests, at DOG, SUGAR, and UNCLE, were performed to determine
the effects of a nuclear detonation on military equipment and field
fortifications (8: 1).
4.6.3
Dose Summary for Operation BUSTER-JANGLE.
The AEC established a dose limit of 1.0 rem of gamma radiation for
participants in Exercise Desert Rock I and a limit of 3.0 rem for the
following:
participants in Exercises Desert Rock II and III; the test
organization, which coordinated BUSTER-JANGLE; and Special Weapons Command,
which provided weather and air support, among other functions, for the test
organization.
SWC sampling pilots and crews were authorized to receive up to
3.9 rem because their mission required them to penetrate the clouds resulting
from the detonations (8: 4).
The following table summarizes the available
dosimetry information:
Summary of External Doses for Operation BUSTER-JANGLE as of 1 May 1986
Gamma Dose (rem)
0-0.5
0.5-1
1-3
3-5
5-10
10+
Army
6,503
85
33
5
4
0
Navy
156
57
90
16
0
0
Air Force
502
16
45
18
0
0
Marine Corps
186
0
2
0
0
0
65
4
20
3
0
0
Civilian DOD
Participants
89