50 years since Maralinga

Submitted: Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 16:57
ThreadID: 38123 Views:3846 Replies:6 FollowUps:16
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Today (27th) is the 50th anniversary since the first atomic test at Maralinga.
A 15kt device- exploded on a tower. Code name for test 'Buffalo'.
This followed the two tests at Emu 3 years prior.
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Reply By: Member - Errol (York WA) - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:01

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:01
Why do thay say that Maralinga was the first test in OZ , when we all know that Emu was . It was on the news last night I think it was last night ) .
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Follow Up By: Member - John (Vic) - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:11

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:11
Because they are ignorant of the facts.
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Follow Up By: Footloose - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:14

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:14
Boom boom ! :))
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Follow Up By: fisho64 - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 23:13

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 23:13
>>>"Why do thay say that Maralinga was the first test in OZ , when we all know that Emu was . It was on the news last night I think it was last night ) ."

Emu wasnt the first, Montebello Islands was the first
"On the October 3, 1952 the United kingdom trialled its first atomic weapon, named "Hurricane", at Montebello Islands off the coast of west Australia.

A year later the first atomic test on the Australian mainland was Totem 1 at Emu field on the 15th of October 1953 (10 kilotons). Totem 2 (8 kilotons) followed on the 27th of October.

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Follow Up By: Mark R - Friday, Sep 29, 2006 at 06:35

Friday, Sep 29, 2006 at 06:35
Two elephants fall over a cliff.................BoomBoom...........(sorry!)
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Follow Up By: fisho64 - Saturday, Sep 30, 2006 at 00:04

Saturday, Sep 30, 2006 at 00:04
>>>"Boom boom ! :)) "

must be a private joke???
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Reply By: Footloose - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:19

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:19
Maybe it's illogical but I don't have pointed ears.
I wasn't there, but the newsreel frightens the %^&* outta me. All the debate about us processing nuclear material and the current state of the world leads me to think "Not on my watch, Mr Howard !"
Rightly or wrongly I'm pretty sure that I'm not alone.
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Follow Up By: Toytruck - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 21:08

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 21:08
Footloose,
yep agree with you 100% but.........most people confuse two important issues in this area and, I do digress a little here but in a way it all relates to the efforts put in by the great Len and his crew. I guess it all boils down to Uranium and a lot of other ingredients. Uranium used for the use of Nuclear Weapons.......yep not good. Uranium, which they have recently found a crap load of in SA and should, and I mean should, be used for clean energy.....a very different story. Huge $$$ for the economy and sometimes unfortunately we are in a world driven by economy. Latest findings in SA will produce some 30 Billion bucks for the economy. This breaks down to somewhere in the vicinity of 20 to 30 thousand jobs over the next two decades....This is huge BUT......so long as the Uranium does not go to the wrong use. BIG Problem. Hence all the media WRT selling the product to countries that have signed the Non Nuclear Weapon agreement........then at the end of the day, what's a signature.

See, the word Nuclear does not mean bombs. I have worked on US warships that were Nuclear but did not have a nuclear weapon on board. A nuclear powered ship is basically a steam engine....like all US Aircraft carriers and most subs, its just that the steam is created by dropping the uranium rods into salt water which develops steam and as the rods almost never wear out there you have a continuous energy source. In this example the problem is...what happens to the rods if the ship is sunk!!! Used to create electricity its a potentially never ending energy source with no.......except like what happened in the disaster in Europe as described below.

Double edged sword I guess.

The thing that I am really impressed about is the fact that I remembered to use the spullchicker for this war and peiice articel :-)
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Reply By: Member - Phil G (SA) - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:33

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:33
They say that the Maralinga area is safe to visit, but not for habitation. I'd love to have a look, but I gather they won't give a permit for love nor money.

Pity we can't visit Maralinga. I find the test sites at Emu fascinating.
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Follow Up By: Troop-a-dour - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:54

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 17:54
The trips run by Anne Beadell visit Maralinga.. Have a friend did the trip with them in May. Bought back heaps of pics..and yea it does look interesting.
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Follow Up By: Member - Phil G (SA) - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 19:01

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 19:01
Troup,
Are you absolutely sure it was Maralinga?? The Beadell Tours website only mentions visiting the bomb sites at Emu. I guess if it is Maralinga, they may not widely advertise that fact.
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Follow Up By: Troop-a-dour - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 19:11

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 19:11
Phil
If you would care to let me have an email address- I could send some pics for you. Could be of interest.
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Follow Up By: Member - Leigh (Vic) - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 20:05

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 20:05
Hi Troop-a-dour

I've had a look around Emu and likewise would love to have a look through Marilinga. If you are happy to send a couple of photos I'd be gratefull. weyland at optusnet dot com dot au. Thanks mate & cheers

Leigh
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Follow Up By: Member - Phil G (SA) - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 21:23

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 21:23
Troop-a-dour,
Photos would be great.
hdj79r at internode dot on dot net

Thanks
phil
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Follow Up By: Member - Jack - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 21:49

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 21:49
A mate of mine got into Maralinga last year and got some photos. As he puts it . . . he had to "grovel" a bit, but eventually got a pass, or permission to visit, or whatever he needed.

I attempted to go for a look earlier this year, but "request denied". Not enough grovelling, I suspect.

Jack
The hurrieder I go, the behinder I get. (Lewis Carroll-Alice In Wonderland)

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Follow Up By: Member - John R (NSW) - Friday, Sep 29, 2006 at 05:08

Friday, Sep 29, 2006 at 05:08
Troup-a-dour,

Thanks for the info. I would love to see the Maralinga photo's too. If possible to jarseman at hotmail dotcom.

So as not to drift too far off topic, heres a photo my father took in Hiroshima 1946.


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Follow Up By: Troop-a-dour - Thursday, Oct 05, 2006 at 16:21

Reply By: Stu-k - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 18:08

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 18:08
Yeah bro I still got the free sunglasses melted into my head :)
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Reply By: Chris & Debbie - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 18:10

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 18:10
I might be high jacking the tread here but i thought i would post this link to a very interesting story about Chenobyl written by a girl who has access to the area and rides through it on her motor bike, scary stuff. It's a long read.
GHOST TOWN
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Follow Up By: Willem - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 18:58

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 18:58
Yep it surfaced here on EO about 3 years ago
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Follow Up By: Member - Davoe (Nullagine) - Friday, Sep 29, 2006 at 12:37

Friday, Sep 29, 2006 at 12:37
people still live in chernobel (old people who dont want to leave) and the reactor was only recently shut down. there is a huge restricted fallout area around there which nature is apparently reclaiming with animals not commonly seen for years
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Reply By: Kumunara (SA) - Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 22:01

Thursday, Sep 28, 2006 at 22:01
I went to a meeting in the mid 80s in relation to studies undertaken re Maralinga. The scientist in charge of investigating contamination in the area prior to the clean up gave a presentation.

There was high levels of radiation detected at the bomb test sites.

In the areas around those sites the level of radiation was low and was equated to having one cigarette in a year.

At that time I was living at Penong and did a lot of work at Yalata. The Kokatha people were moved to Yalata prior to the bomb tests.

The Maralinga Tjaratja lands have been given to the Kokatha people re a Land Rights Claim.

There are some people who live at Yalata who are deformed. One of those was nicknamed "Maralinga Bomb Boy". The Yalata people believe that the bomb tests were the cause of his deformity.
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