Addendum
A NOTE ON THE VEGETATION
OF THE NORTHERNISLETS OF RONGELAP ATOLL, MARSHALL ISLANDS, MARCH 1959
B.S. BLUMBERG* AND R.A. CONARD

Fosberg’’ reported changesin the vegetation of
the northernislets of Rongelap Atoll (observed in
1956) which he inferred might have been associated with the radioactive fallout that occurred on
this atoll in 1954. During the medical survey of

and to re-examine the vegetation. A helicopter
wasavailable for transportation, which permitted
general and detailed air examination as well as
two short ground surveys. The northern islets were
estimated to have received a radiation dose of
= 3000 r. The islets of Naen and Gegen were examined in greatest detail. The moststriking feature observed from the air was the generally gray

the Rongelap people® carried out in March 1959,

an opportunity arose to visit someoftheseislets

color of muchof the vegetation, in contrastto its

*National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland.

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