ant
DELETED: (DAKOTA)
Project 11.2 = Cloud Sampling ~ H. F, Plank
P. F. Moore

Equipment:
Nine Aircraft equipped for cloud sampling as described in the
DELETED| report were used on this mission:

"A" Flight, Tiger Red one

(F-84); "B" Flight, Mger Red Two (F~84); "C" Flight, Hotshot 1 (B+57);
"D" Flight, Hotshot II (B~57); "E" Flight, Hotshot III (B57); "F"
Flight, Hotshot IV, (B-57); Control, Cassidy (B-57); and Tiger Spare 1 & 2
(2 Fa84'8).

*

Weather:

There was a thick cirrus overcast from 37,000 to 45,000 ft. which
largely obscured the bomb cloud at most altitudes in which sampling aire

craft were operating.

Wind shears were not particularly favorable for

sampling, and velocities were moderately high.
Cloud Description:
The cloud rose through the cirrus layer at 37,000 to 45,000 feet
where it was completely obscured and was almost impossible to see above

that level due to haze and condensation of natural clouds around the bomb
cloud.

Only a very small tail extended below the cirrus at 37,000 ft.

Cloud color was very light, which increased the confusion with natural

clouds,

The upper umbrella of the cloud extended back almost all the way

from Bikini to Eniwetok and sampling aircraft returning to Eniwetok at
higher altitudes encountered patches of radioactive cloud material, Cassidy estimated the maximum cloud height at 62,000 ft. plus or minus 2,000
ft.

COPIED/DOE

LANL RC

~49 -

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6K

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