NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom was the third country to test an independently developed nuclear weapon in October 1952. It is one of the five "Nuclear Weapons States" (NWS) under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which the UK ratified in 1968. The UK is currently thought to retain a weapons stockpile of around 200 operational nuclear warheads. Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Opened for signature July 1, 1968 in New York Entered into force March 5, 1970 Conditions for entry into force Ratification by the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, the United States, and 40 other signatory states. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945 lifted nuclear fallout some 18 km (60,000 feet) above the epicenter. ...

Since the 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement, the US and UK have cooperated extensively on nuclear security matters. The so-called special relationship between the two countries has involved the exchange of classified scientific information and nuclear materials such as plutonium. Britain has not run an independent weapons delivery programme since the cancellation of the Blue Streak missile in the 1960s, instead pursuing joint development of American delivery systems, designed and manufactured by Lockheed Martin, and fitting them with warheads designed and manufactured by the UK's Atomic Weapons Establishment. The 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement is a bilateral treaty between the US and the UK on nuclear weapons cooperation. ... Prime Minister Winston Churchill, (left) with President Franklin Roosevelt, at the 1945 Yalta Conference. ... General Name, Symbol, Number plutonium, Pu, 94 Chemical series actinides Group, Period, Block n/a, 7, f Appearance silvery white Atomic mass (244) g/mol Electron configuration [Rn] 5f6 7s2 Electrons per shell 2, 8, 18, 32, 24, 8, 2 Physical properties Phase solid Density (near r. ... The Blue Streak missile was a British ballistic missile designed in 1955. ... Lockheed/BAE/Northrop F-35 Lockheed Trident missile C-130 Hercules; in production since the 1950s, now as the C-130J Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) is an aerospace manufacturer formed in 1995 by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta. ... AWE plc logo The Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston (formerly the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Aldermaston) is situated in the UK, just 7 miles north of Basingstoke and approximately 14 miles south-west of Reading, Berkshire, near a village called Aldermaston, bordering with Tadley. ...

In contrast with the other permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, the United Kingdom currently operates only a single nuclear deterrent system since decommissioning its tactical WE.177 free-falling nuclear bombs in 1998. The present system consists of four Vanguard class submarines armed with up to 16 Trident missiles, which each carry nuclear warheads in up to 8 MIRVs, performing both strategic and sub-strategic deterrence roles. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is the organ of the United Nations charged with maintaining peace and security among nations. ... An inert bomb originally used for training, shown here on its trolley in a museum WE.177 was the last British air-launched nuclear bomb. ... Vanguard Class Submarine Test launch of a Trident D5 SLBM The Royal Navys Vanguard class of nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), each armed with 16 Trident II SLBMs, includes four boats: Vanguard (S28), Victorious (S29), Vigilant (S30), and Vengeance (S31), all built by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd, now... The Trident missile, named after the trident, is an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which is armed with nuclear warheads and is launched from submarines (SSBNs), making it a SLBM. The Trident was built in two variants: the I (C4) UGM-96A and II (D5) UGM-133A. The C4 and D5... The MIRVed U.S. Peacekeeper missile, with the re-entry vehicles highlighted in red. ... A strategy is a long term plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 km (11 mi) above the hypocenter. ...

While a firm decision has yet to be taken on the replacement of the UK's nuclear deterrent the manufacturer of the UK's warheads, AWE, is currently undertaking research which is largely dedicated to providing new warheads^[1] and on 2006-12-04 the Prime Minister Tony Blair announced plans for a new class of nuclear missile submarines.^[2] AWE plc logo The Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston (formerly the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Aldermaston) is situated in the UK, just 7 miles north of Basingstoke and approximately 14 miles south-west of Reading, Berkshire, near a village called Aldermaston, bordering with Tadley. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... December 4 is the 338th day of the year (339th on leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Number of warheads

In the Strategic Defence Review published in July 1998, the British Government stated that once the Vanguard submarines became fully operational (the fourth and final one, Vengeance, entered service on 27 November 1999), it would "maintain a stockpile of fewer than 200 operationally available warheads".^[3] The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has estimated the figure as about 165, consisting of 144 deployed weapons plus an extra 15 percent as spares.^[4] Image File history File links Download high resolution version (640x792, 49 KB)From [www. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (640x792, 49 KB)From [www. ... Location of Faslane and RNAD Coulport Faslane Naval Base, HMNB Clyde Her Majestys Naval Base Clyde is the headquarters of the Royal Navy in Scotland and is best known as the home of the United Kingdoms strategic deterrent submarine force. ... Motto: (Latin for No one provokes me with impunity)1 Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official language(s) English, Gaelic, Scots 2 Government Constitutional monarchy - Queen Queen Elizabeth II - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP - First Minister Jack McConnell MSP Unification - by Kenneth I... Vanguard Class Submarine Test launch of a Trident D5 SLBM The Royal Navys Vanguard class of nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), each armed with 16 Trident II SLBMs, includes four boats: Vanguard (S28), Victorious (S29), Vigilant (S30), and Vengeance (S31), all built by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd, now... Eight vessels of the British Royal Navy have been named HMS Vengeance. ... November 27 is the 331st day (332nd on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) was founded in 1966 to commemorate 150 years of unbroken peace in Sweden. ...

At the same time, the British Government indicated that warheads "required to provide a necessary processing margin and for technical surveillance purposes" were not included in the "fewer than 200" figure.^[5] However, as recently declassified archived documents on Chevaline make clear, the 15% excess (referred to by SIPRI as for spares) is normally intended to provide the 'necessary processing margin', and 'surveillance rounds do not contain any nuclear material, being completely inert. These surveillance rounds are used to monitor deterioration in the many non-nuclear components of the warhead, and are best compared with inert training rounds. The SIPRI figures correspond accurately with the official announcements and are likely to be the most accurate. The Natural Resources Defense Council speculates that a figure of 200 is accurate to within a few tens,^[6] and the World Almanac speculates there is a potentially much higher quantity of 200-300, but does not provide hard evidence. Experience with earlier weapons has shown speculation in this area to be inaccurate and has invariably been proved wrong. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is a New York City-based, non-profit environmentalist advocacy group in the United States. ... The World Almanac and Book of Facts is a book considered to be a top reference work. ...

Weapons tests

Different sources give the number of test explosions that the UK has conducted as either 44^[7]^[8] or 45.^[9]^[10] The 23 or 24 tests from December 1962 onwards were in conjunction with the United States at their Nevada test site^[11] with the final test being the Julin Bristol shot which took place on 26 November 1991.^[12] The apparently low numbers of British tests is misleading when compared to the large numbers of tests carried out by the US, the Soviet Union, China, and especially France; because the UK has had extensive access to US test data, obviating the need for UK tests: and an added factor is that many tests required are for 'weapon effects tests'; tests not of the nuclear device itself, but of the nuclear effects on hardened components designed to resist ABM attack. Many such tests were unrecorded as British because they were "piggybacked" onto tests of US weapons that were to be done anyway, with or without the UK "piggybacks". Numerous such 'effects' tests were done in support of the Chevaline programme especially; and there is some evidence that some were permitted for the French programme to harden their RVs and warheads; because most French tests being under the ocean floor, access to measure 'weapon effects' was nigh impossible.^[13] An independent test programme would see the UK numbers soar to French levels. The British government signed the Partial Test Ban Treaty on 5 August 1963^[14] along with the United States and the Soviet Union which effectively restricted it to underground nuclear tests by outlawing testing in the atmosphere, underwater or in space. It signed the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty on 24 September 1996^[15] and ratified it on 6 April 1998,^[16] having passed the necessary legislation on 18 March 1998 as the Nuclear Explosions (Prohibition and Inspections) Act 1998. Julin Bristol was the last British nuclear test, and took place at the Nevada Test Site on 26 November 1991. ... November 26 is the 330th day (331st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Treaty Banning poop, in Outer Space, and Under Water, often abbreviated as the Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT), Limited Test Ban Treaty (LTBT), or Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (NTBT), although the former also refers to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), is a treaty intended to obtain an agreement... August 5 is the 217th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (218th in leap years), with 148 days remaining. ... 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1963 calendar). ... Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Opened for signature September 10, 1996[1] in New York Entered into force Not yet in force Conditions for entry into force The treaty will enter into force 180 days after it is ratified by all of the following 44 (Annex 2) countries: Algeria, Argentina, Australia... September 24 is the 267th day of the year (268th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... April 6 is the 96th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (97th in leap years). ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ...

Nuclear defence

Warning systems

The UK has relied on the Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) and, in later years, Defense Support Program (DSP) satellites for warning of a nuclear attack. Both of these systems are owned and controlled by the United States, although the UK has joint control over UK based systems. One of the four component radars for the BMEWS is based at RAF Fylingdales in North Yorkshire. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (4448x2805, 2417 KB) Summary BMEWS solid-state phased-array radar at RAF Fylindales. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (4448x2805, 2417 KB) Summary BMEWS solid-state phased-array radar at RAF Fylindales. ... A giant phased-array radar in Alaska In telecommunication, a phased array is a group of antennas in which the relative phases of the respective signals feeding the antennas are varied in such a way that the effective radiation pattern of the array is reinforced in a desired direction and... This long range RADAR antenna, known as ALTAIR, is used to detect and track space objects in conjunction with ABM testing at the Ronald Reagan Test Site on the Kwajalein atoll[1]. RADAR is a system that uses radio waves to determine and map the location, direction, and/or speed... North Yorkshire is a county, located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. ... Phased array BMEWS Installation at Thule, Greenland The Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) was the first operational ballistic missile detection radar. ... The four minute warning was conceived by the British Government during the Cold War. ... BMEWS solid-state phased-array radar at RAF Fylingdales RAF Fylingdales is a British Royal Air Force station on Fylingdales Moor, North Yorkshire, England. ... Phased array BMEWS Installation at Thule, Greenland The Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) was the first operational ballistic missile detection radar. ... A payload launch vehicle carrying a prototype exoatmospheric kill vehicle is launched from Meck Island at the Kwajalein Missile Range on Dec. ... Phased array BMEWS Installation at Thule, Greenland The Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) was the first operational ballistic missile detection radar. ... Painting of a DSP satellite on station. ... BMEWS solid-state phased-array radar at RAF Fylingdales RAF Fylingdales is a British Royal Air Force station on Fylingdales Moor, North Yorkshire, England. ... North Yorkshire is a county, located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. ...

In 2003 the British government stated that it will consent to a request from the US to upgrade the radar at Fylingdales for use in the US National Missile Defense system.^[17] A payload launch vehicle carrying a prototype exoatmospheric kill vehicle is launched from Meck Island at the Kwajalein Missile Range on Dec. ...

Nevertheless, missile defence is not currently a significant political issue within the UK. The ballistic missile threat is perceived to be less severe, and consequently less of a priority, than other threats to its security.^[18]

Image File history File links ProtectAndSurvive. ... Image File history File links ProtectAndSurvive. ... The old American Civil Defense logo, used today federally only as a historical reminder on FEMAs seal, the triangle emphasises the 3-step Civil Defense philosophy used before the foundation of FEMA and Comprehensive Emergency Management. ...

Attack scenarios

During the cold war a significant effort by government and academia was made to assess the affects of a nuclear attack on Britain. A major government exercise, Square Leg, was held in September 1980 and involved around 130 warheads with a total yield of 200 megatons. This is probably the largest attack that the apparatus of the nation state could survive in some limited form. Observers have speculated that an actual exchange would be much larger with one academic describing a 200 megaton attack as an "extremely low figure and one which we find very difficult to take seriously".^[19] In the early 1980s it was thought an attack causing almost complete loss of life could be achieved with the use of less than 15% of the total nuclear yield available to the Soviets.^[19] square leg is also a cricket fielding position. ...

Civil defence

During the cold war, various governments developed civil defence programmes aimed to prepare civilian and local government infrastructure for a nuclear strike on Britain. The most famous such programme was probably the series of booklets and public information films entitled Protect and Survive. But no British government has ever put more than a minimal effort into Civil Defence, recognizing the reality that deep shelter for a protracted period of time for more than a tiny part of the population is not a practical proposition for any state, and especially a small, heavily-populated island such as Britain. Such efforts as were made were merely a gesture to popular sensibilities. The old American Civil Defense logo, used today federally only as a historical reminder on FEMAs seal, the triangle emphasises the 3-step Civil Defense philosophy used before the foundation of FEMA and Comprehensive Emergency Management. ... The front cover text reads: This booklet tells you how to make your home and your family as safe as possible under nuclear attack. Protect and Survive was the title of a series of booklets and a public information film series produced by the British government during the late 1970s... The old American Civil Defense logo, used today federally only as a historical reminder on FEMAs seal, the triangle emphasises the 3-step Civil Defense philosophy used before the foundation of FEMA and Comprehensive Emergency Management. ... Public Information Films (known as PIFs) are a series of government commissioned short films, shown during television advertising breaks in the UK. The US equivalent is the Public Service Announcement (PSAs). ... The front cover text reads: This booklet tells you how to make your home and your family as safe as possible under nuclear attack. Protect and Survive was the title of a series of booklets and a public information film series produced by the British government during the late 1970s...

The booklet contained information on building a nuclear refuge within a so-called 'fall out room' at home, sanitation, limiting fire hazards and descriptions of the audio signals for attack warning, fall-out warning and all clear. It was anticipated that families might need to stay within the fall-out room for up to fourteen days after an attack almost without leaving it at all. Image File history File links Cquote1. ... Image File history File links Cquote2. ... A sign pointing to an old fallout shelter in New York City. ...

Weapons programmes

See also History of nuclear weapons A nuclear fireball lights up the night in a United States nuclear test. ...

Download high resolution version (1180x1474, 162 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1180x1474, 162 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The Manhattan Project resulted in the development of the first nuclear weapons, and the first-ever nuclear detonation, at the Trinity test of July 16, 1945. ... An early stage in the Trinity fireball, photographed by Berlyn Brixner. ... July 16 is the 197th day (198th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 168 days remaining. ... 1945 (MCMVL) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ...

Tube Alloys and Manhattan Project

British nuclear weapons had their genesis in the Second World War when the United Kingdom worked on development of an atomic bomb, initially on their own under the cover name of Tube Alloys but later as a partner in the American Manhattan Project. The Manhattan Project resulted in the two nuclear weapons dropped on Japan which led to that country's unconditional surrender. // Tube Alloys was the code-name for the British nuclear weapon programme during World War II, when the very possibility of nuclear weapons was kept at such a high level of secrecy that it had to be referred to by code even in the highest circles of government. ... The Manhattan Project resulted in the development of the first nuclear weapons, and the first-ever nuclear detonation, at the Trinity test of July 16, 1945. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ... // Tube Alloys was the code-name for the British nuclear weapon programme during World War II, when the very possibility of nuclear weapons was kept at such a high level of secrecy that it had to be referred to by code even in the highest circles of government. ... The Manhattan Project resulted in the development of the first nuclear weapons, and the first-ever nuclear detonation, at the Trinity test of July 16, 1945. ... The Fat Man mushroom cloud resulting from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rises 18 km (11 mi, 60,000 ft) into the air from the hypocenter. ...

Post-war development programme

The United Kingdom started independently developing nuclear weapons again shortly after the war. Labour Prime Minister Clement Attlee set up a cabinet sub-committee, GEN.75 (and known informally as the "Atomic Bomb Committee"), to examine the feasibility as early as 29 August 1945. It was US refusal to continue nuclear cooperation with Britain after World War II (due to the McMahon Act of 1946 restricting foreign access to US nuclear technology) which eventually prompted the building of a bomb: The Labour Party has been, since its founding in the early 20th century, the principal political party of the left in the United Kingdom. ... A prime minister is the most senior minister of a cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, FRS, PC (3 January 1883 â€“ 8 October 1967) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from 1945 to 1951. ... August 29 is the 241st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (242nd in leap years), with 124 days remaining. ... 1945 (MCMVL) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ... The McMahon Act is an informal name for the Atomic Energy Act of 1946 which determined, in the wake of World War II how the United States government would control and manage the nuclear technology it had developed. ...

A nuclear program started in 1946 under the control of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, that was civilian in character, but was also tasked with the job of producing the fissile material, initially only plutonium 239, that was expected to be required for a military programme. It was based at two former airfields, Harwell (then in Berkshire now in Oxfordshire) and Risley in Cheshire. Risley became the headquarters of the Industrial Division of UKAEA, and there were other sites under its control, notably the Calder Hall reactors at Windscale (later Sellafield) used to produce weapons grade Pu-239. The first British nuclear pile, GLEEP, went critical at Harwell on 15 August 1947. When AWRE was established at Aldermaston, it was the Weapons Division of the (civilian) UKAEA, not being subsumed into the Ministry of Defence until the 1970s. Image File history File links Cquote1. ... Ernest Bevin (9 March 1881 - 14 April 1951) was a British labour leader, politician, and statesman, born in the small village of Winsford in Somerset, England. ... The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (commonly referred to as Foreign Secretary) is a member of the British Government responsible for relations with foreign countries, heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (often called simply the Foreign Office). ... Portrait of U.S. Secretary of State James F. Byrnes James Francis Byrnes (May 2, 1879 â€“ April 9, 1972) was a confidant of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and one of the most powerful men in American domestic and foreign policy in the mid-2006s. ... Image File history File links Cquote2. ... St Matthews Church in Harwell. ... Berkshire (IPA: or ; sometimes abbreviated to Berks) is a county in England and forms part of the South East England region. ... Oxfordshire (abbreviated Oxon, from the Latinised form Oxonia) is a county in south-east England, bordering on Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, and Warwickshire. ... Risley is a neighbourhood in the northeast corner of Warrington. ... The Cheshire Plain - photo taken adjacent to Beeston Castle The Cheshire Plain - photo taken towards Merseyside The Cheshire Plain panorama - photo taken from Mid-Cheshire Ridge Cattle farming in the county Black-and-white timbered buildings on Nantwich High Street Cheshire (or, archaically, the County of Chester) [1] is a... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... August 15 is the 227th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (228th in leap years), with 138 days remaining. ... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ...

William Penney, a physicist specialising in hydrodynamics was asked in October 1946 to prepare a report on the viability of building a British weapon. He had joined the Manhattan project in 1944, and had been in an observation plane that accompanied the Nagasaki bomber, and had also done damage assessment on the ground following Japan's surrender. He had subsequently participated in the American Operation Crossroads test at Bikini Atoll. As a result of his report, the decision to proceed was formally made on 8 January 1947 at a meeting of the GEN.163 committee of six cabinet members, including Prime Minister Clement Attlee with Penney appointed to take charge of the programme. William George Penney (June 24, 1909 â€“ March 3, 1991) was a British physicist who was responsible for the development of British nuclear technology following the World War II. A mathematician by training, he became an expert on wave dynamics. ... ... Hydrodynamics is fluid dynamics applied to liquids, such as water, alcohol, oil, and blood. ... Nagasaki (Japanese: é•·å´Žå¸‚, Nagasaki-shi , long peninsula) is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture in Japan. ... A 21 kiloton underwater nuclear weapons effects test, known as Operation Crossroads (Event Baker), conducted at Bikini Atoll (1946). ... The Flag of Bikini Atoll Bikini Atoll (also known as Pikinni Atoll) is an uninhabited 6. ... January 8 is the 8th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ... A prime minister is the most senior minister of a cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ... Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee, KG, OM, CH, FRS, PC (3 January 1883 â€“ 8 October 1967) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from 1945 to 1951. ...

The project was hidden under the name High Explosive Research or HER and was based initially at the Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) at Fort Halstead in Kent,^[22] but in 1950 moved to a new site at AWRE Aldermaston in Berkshire. A particular problem was the McMahon Act. Although British scientists knew the areas of the Manhattan Project in which they had worked well, they only had the sketchiest details of those parts which they were not directly involved in. With the start of the Cold War there had been some warming of nuclear relations between the British and American governments, which led to hopes of American cooperation. However these were quickly dashed by the arrest in early 1950 of Klaus Fuchs, a Soviet spy working at Harwell. Plutonium production reactors were based at Windscale, later known as Sellafield in Cumberland (now in Cumbria) and construction began in September 1947, leading to the first plutonium metal ready in March 1952. Sevenoaks is a town in the Sevenoaks district of Kent in South East England and forms part of the London commuter belt. ... AWE plc logo The Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston (formerly the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Aldermaston) is situated in the UK, just 7 miles north of Basingstoke and approximately 14 miles south-west of Reading, Berkshire, near a village called Aldermaston, bordering with Tadley. ... Berkshire (IPA: or ; sometimes abbreviated to Berks) is a county in England and forms part of the South East England region. ... The Cold War was the period of protracted conflict and competition between the United States and the Soviet Union and their allies from the late 1940s until the late 1980s. ... Klaus Fuchs ID badge photo from Los Alamos. ... State motto (Russian): ÐŸÑ€Ð¾Ð»ÐµÑ‚Ð°Ñ€Ð¸Ð¸ Ð²ÑÐµÑ… ÑÑ‚Ñ€Ð°Ð½, ÑÐ¾ÐµÐ´Ð¸Ð½ÑÐ¹Ñ‚ÐµÑÑŒ! (Transliterated: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Translated: Workers of the world, unite!) Capital Moscow Official language None; Russian (de facto) Government Federation of Soviet republics Area - Total - % water 1st before collapse 22,402,200 kmÂ² Approx. ... Spy and secret agent redirect here; for alternate use, see Spy (disambiguation) and Secret agent (disambiguation). ... The Sellafield facility on the Cumbrian coast, United Kingdom Sellafield is the name of a nuclear site, close to the village and railway station of Seascale, operated by the British Nuclear Group, but owned since 1 April 2005 by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. ... Cumberland is one of the 39 traditional counties of England. ... Cumbria is a county in the North West region of England. ...

First test and early systems

The first British weapon test, Operation Hurricane, was detonated below the frigate HMS Plym anchored in the Monte Bello Islands on 2 October 1952. This led to the first deployed weapon, the Blue Danube free-fall bomb, in November 1953. It was very similar to the American Mark 4 weapon in having a 60 inch diameter, 32 lens implosion system with a levitated core suspended within a natural uranium tamper. The warhead was entombed within a bomb carcass measuring 62 inches dia and 24 feet long, and being so large, could only be carried by the V-Bomber fleet. The explosion cloud resulting from the Operation Hurricane detonation Operation Hurricane was the test of the first British atomic bomb. ... Blue Danube was the first operational British nuclear weapon. ... Blue Peacockâ€”dubbed the chicken-powered nuclear bombâ€”was the codename of a British project in the 1950s with the goal to store a number of ten-kiloton nuclear mines in the Rhine area in Germany, to be placed at nearby target locations in the case of war. ... Image File history File links Op_hurricane. ... Image File history File links Op_hurricane. ... The explosion cloud resulting from the Operation Hurricane detonation Operation Hurricane was the test of the first British atomic bomb. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Blue_Danube_Bomb. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Blue_Danube_Bomb. ... Blue Danube was the first operational British nuclear weapon. ... A postwar Little Boy casing mockup. ... A post-war Fat Man model. ... Operation Grapple: Grapple X Valiant XD824 being bombed-up behind canvas screens Operation Grapple was a United Kingdom tri-service exercise leading to the detonation of the first British hydrogen bomb on May 15, 1957. ... The explosion cloud resulting from the Operation Hurricane detonation Operation Hurricane was the test of the first British atomic bomb. ... HMS Plym (K271), was a River-class anti-submarine frigate built for the Royal Navy at Smiths Dock, Middlesbrough, England. ... The Monte Bello Islands are an archipelago of around 140 small islands located 80 miles off the Pilbara coast of North West Australia. ... October 2 is the 275th day (276th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 90 days remaining. ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Blue Danube was the first operational British nuclear weapon. ... The term V bomber was used for the Royal Air Force aircraft during the 1950s and 1960s that comprised the UKs strategic nuclear strike force. ...

A nuclear landmine dubbed Brown Bunny, later Blue Bunny, and finally Blue Peacock that used the Blue Danube warhead was developed from 1954 with the goal of deployment in the Rhine area of Germany. The system would have been set to an eight-day timer in the case of invasion of Western Europe by the Soviets but was cancelled in February 1958 with only two built. It was judged that the risks posed by the nuclear fallout and the political aspects of preparing for destruction and contamination of allied territory were simply too high to justify. A more usual reason for cancellation revealed by numerous archived declassified documents was that the Army felt it was too unwieldy and diverted their efforts into a successor, Violet Vision, based on the smaller successor to Blue Danube, Red Beard. None were ever built, the Army instead receiving U.S. ADMs or Atomic Demoltion Munitions under the established procedures for supply of Nato allies from U.S. stocks held in U.S. custody in Europe. A sea mine based on the Blue Danube warhead and codenamed Cudgel was also envisaged for delivery by midget submarines, referred to by naval sources as "sneak craft"; perhaps reflecting a belief that these craft were really rather ungentlemanly methods of waging war. None were built. Blue Peacockâ€”dubbed the chicken-powered nuclear bombâ€”was the codename of a British project in the 1950s with the goal to store a number of ten-kiloton nuclear mines in the Rhine area in Germany, to be placed at nearby target locations in the case of war. ... Loreley At 1,320 kilometres (820 miles) and an average discharge of more than 2,000 cubic meters per second, the Rhine (Dutch Rijn, French Rhin, German Rhein, Italian: Reno, Romansch: Rein, ) is one of the longest and most important rivers in Europe. ... Map of hypothetical fallout dispersal after a large-scale nuclear attack against the United States. ...

A gaseous diffusion plant was built at Capenhurst, near Chester and started production in 1953 producing low enriched uranium (LEU). By 1957 it was capable of annually producing 125 kg of highly enriched uranium (HEU). The capacity was further increased and by 1959 it may have been producing as much as 1600 kg per year [1]. At the end of 1961, having produced between 3.8 and 4.9 tonnes of HEU it was switched over to LEU production for civil use. Additional plutonium production was provided by eight electricity generating Magnox reactors at Calder Hall and Chapelcross which started operating in 1956 and 1959 respectively. Capenhurst is a village and civil parishes in Cheshire, England on The Wirral Peninsula. ... Chester is the county town of Cheshire in North West England. ... // Enriched uranium is uranium whose uranium-235 content has been increased through the process of isotope separation. ... Enriched uranium is uranium whose uranium-235 content has been increased through the process of isotope separation. ... A tonne or metric ton (symbol t), sometimes referred to as a metric tonne, is a measurement of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms. ... Schematic diagram of a Magnox nuclear reactor showing gas flow. ... Calder Hall can refer to - Calder Hall Magnox nuclear power station at Sellafield Calder Hall (Trinidad and Tobago) This is a disambiguation page â€” a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Chapelcross was a Magnox nuclear power station located near the town of Annan in Dumfries and Galloway in south west Scotland. ...

Thermonuclear weaponry

The detonation by both the U.S. and the Soviet Union of thermonuclear devices alarmed the British government of Winston Churchill and a decision was made on 27 July 1954 to begin development of a thermonuclear bomb, making use of the more powerful nuclear fusion reaction rather than nuclear fission. There was little or no dissent in the House of Commons. Operation Grapple: Grapple X Valiant XD824 being bombed-up behind canvas screens Operation Grapple was a United Kingdom tri-service exercise leading to the detonation of the first British hydrogen bomb on May 15, 1957. ... In astronomy, stellar classification is a classification of stars based initially on photospheric temperature and its associated spectral characteristics, and subsequenly refined in terms of other characteristics. ... Blue Steel Type nuclear stand-off missile Nationality UK Era Cold War Launch platform Aircraft Target History Builder Avro Date of design Production period Service duration 1963-1969 Operators UK RAF Variants Number built Specifications Type Diameter 0. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945 lifted nuclear fallout some 18 km (60,000 feet) above the epicenter. ... The deuterium-tritium (D-T) fusion reaction is considered the most promising for producing fusion power. ... For the generation of electrical power by fission, see Nuclear power plant An induced nuclear fission event. ...

The Economist, The New Statesmen and other newspapers also regarded as left-wing, then as now, also supported the government's policy of nuclear deterrence as a means of reducing the size of conventional forces. Their view (in 1954-55) is fairly summarised as being not opposed to nuclear deterrence and nuclear weapons, but in their view that of the United States would suffice, and that of the costs of the 'nuclear umbrella' was best left to be borne by the United States alone. Their attitudes to nuclear weapons have changed somewhat since then.^[24] Image File history File links Cquote1. ... Image File history File links Cquote2. ... Image File history File links Blue_Danube_release_from_Valiant_bomber. ... Image File history File links Blue_Danube_release_from_Valiant_bomber. ... this article is about the jet powered bomber, for the biplane see Vickers 131 Valiant. ... Maralinga is a small town in the desert of South Australia, famous for nuclear tests that took place there in the 1950s. ...

The first prototype, Short Granite, was detonated on 15 May 1957 in Operation Grapple, with disappointing results at 300 kt, when the target requirement was one megaton. A further test of Purple Granite yielded less at 200 kt. Further testing in 1958 got performance up to the requirement, but none were ever deployed, because the 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement intervened, making fully developed and Service engineered designs available more quickly, and more cheaply. The first of these was the U.S. Mk-28 weapon which was anglicised and manufactured in the UK as Red Snow and quickly deployed as Yellow Sun Mk.2 in the V-bomber fleet. Red Snow became the warhead of choice for the Blue Steel stand-off missile and some of the Skybolt missiles intended for carriage by the V-bombers. Under the 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement 5.4 tonnes of UK produced plutonium was sent to the U.S. in return for 6.7kg of tritium and 7.5 tonnes of HEU over the period 1960-1979, replacing Capenhurst production, although much of the HEU was used not for weapons, but as fuel for the growing UK fleet of nuclear submarines, both of the Polaris variety and others numbering approx twelve. May 15 is the 135th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (136th in leap years). ... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Operation Grapple: Grapple X Valiant XD824 being bombed-up behind canvas screens Operation Grapple was a United Kingdom tri-service exercise leading to the detonation of the first British hydrogen bomb on May 15, 1957. ... The 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement is a bilateral treaty between the US and the UK on nuclear weapons cooperation. ... Red Snow was a British thermonuclear weapon. ... In astronomy, stellar classification is a classification of stars based initially on photospheric temperature and its associated spectral characteristics, and subsequenly refined in terms of other characteristics. ... The 1990 thriller Blue Steel stars Jamie Lee Curtis, Ron Silver, Clancy Brown, Elizabeth Pena and Louise Fletcher. ... The 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement is a bilateral treaty between the US and the UK on nuclear weapons cooperation. ... Tritium (symbol T or 3H) is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. ... Enriched uranium is uranium whose uranium-235 content has been increased through the process of isotope separation. ...

Fifty-eight Blue Danube bombs were produced, although archived declassified files indicate that only a small proportion of these were ever serviceable at any one time. It remained in service until 1963, when it was replaced by Red Beard, a smaller tactical boosted-fission weapon that used the same fissile core as Blue Danube and was deployed on many smaller aircraft than the V-bombers, both ashore and at sea aboard five carriers. Stocks of Red Beard were maintained in Cyprus, Singapore, and a smaller number in the UK A Red Beard weapon on its bomb trolley, fitted with a bomb-carrier prior to loading into a Canberra bomber. ...

After the detonation of U.S. and Soviet thermonuclear weapons the UK deployed an Interim Megaton Weapon in the V-bomber fleet until a true thermonuclear weapon could be devised from the Christmas Island tests. This never tested interim weapon derived from the Orange Herald warhead tested at Christmas Island on 31 May 1957 yielding 720 kt ^[25] known as Green Grass was merely a very large unboosted pure fission weapon yielding 400 kt. It was the largest pure fission weapon ever deployed by any nuclear state. Green Grass was deployed first in a modified Blue Danube casing and known as Violet Club. A later variant was deployed in a Yellow Sun Mk.1 casing. A true thermonuclear device was planned for the later Yellow Sun Mk.2 bomb, and after the 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement the choice fell on a U.S. Mk.28 warhead manufactured in Britain and known as Red Snow. This Red Snow warhead was also fitted in the Blue Steel, an air-launched stand-off missile which remained in service until Dec 1970. It was to have been replaced by Skybolt air-launched ballistic missiles purchased from the United States, and the British consequently cancelled their Blue Steel extended range upgrade and Blue Streak ballistic missile projects, because of changing military perceptions of the vulnerability of these Blue Streak land-based liquid-fuelled missiles that were so close to Soviet missile launch sites in Eastern Europe. Similar changed military perceptions led to the removal of Thor IRBM missiles in the UK; and Jupiter IRBMs in Italy and Turkey; although the Turkish sites were implicated in an alleged deal following the Cuban Missile Crisis. To British consternation, and considerable protests, the incoming Kennedy administration cancelled Skybolt at the end of 1962 because it was believed by the U.S. Secretary of State for Defense, Robert McNamara, that other delivery systems were progessing better than expected, and a further expensive system was surplus to U.S. requirements. Image File history File links Orange_Herald_warhead. ... Image File history File links Orange_Herald_warhead. ... Blue Danube was the first operational British nuclear weapon. ... Violet Club was a nuclear weapon deployed by the United Kingdom during the cold war. ... Orange Herald was the name of a British nuclear weapon from the 1950s. ... Violet Club was a nuclear weapon deployed by the United Kingdom during the cold war. ... In astronomy, stellar classification is a classification of stars based initially on photospheric temperature and its associated spectral characteristics, and subsequenly refined in terms of other characteristics. ... In astronomy, stellar classification is a classification of stars based initially on photospheric temperature and its associated spectral characteristics, and subsequenly refined in terms of other characteristics. ... The 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement is a bilateral treaty between the US and the UK on nuclear weapons cooperation. ... Red Snow was a British thermonuclear weapon. ... Blue Steel Type nuclear stand-off missile Nationality UK Era Cold War Launch platform Aircraft Target History Builder Avro Date of design Production period Service duration 1963-1969 Operators UK RAF Variants Number built Specifications Type Diameter 0. ... The Douglas GAM-87A Skybolt was an air-launched ballistic missile (ALBM) developed during the late 1950s. ... The Blue Streak missile was a British ballistic missile designed in 1955. ... USAF spy photo of one of the suspected launch sites The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation during the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States regarding the Soviet deployment of nuclear missiles in Cuba. ... Robert Strange McNamara (born June 9, 1916) is an American business executive and a former United States Secretary of Defense. ...

Download high resolution version (1162x1451, 290 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1162x1451, 290 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Polaris A-3 on launch pad in Cape Canaveral The Polaris missile was a submarine-launched, two-stage solid-fuel nuclear-armed ballistic missile (SLBM) built during the Cold War by Lockheed for the United States Navy. ... Cape Canaveral from space, August 1991 Cape Canaveral (Cabo CaÃ±averal in Spanish) is a strip of land in Brevard County, Florida, United States, near the center of that states Atlantic coast. ... French M45 SLBM and M51 SLBM Submarine-launched ballistic missiles or SLBMs are ballistic missiles delivering nuclear weapons that are launched from submarines. ...

Polaris

After the cancellation of Skybolt, the British purchased Polaris missiles for use in British-built ballistic missile submarines. The agreement between President Kennedy and Harold Macmillan, the Polaris Sales Agreement, was announced on December 21, 1962 and HMS Resolution sailed on her first Polaris-armed patrol on 14 June 1968.^[26] In the 1970s the UK Polaris RVs and warheads were vulnerable to the Soviet ABM screen concentrated around Moscow, and the UK developed a Polaris improved-front-end (IFE) codenamed Chevaline, designed to counter this ABM defence which threatened to completely nullify an independent British deterrent posture. When Chevaline became public knowledge in 1980, it generated huge controversy as it had been kept secret by the four governments of Wilson, Heath, Wilson (again) and Callaghan, whilst costs rocketed; admittedly during a period of high inflation; until disclosed by the Thatcher government. By the time it entered service in 1982 it had cost approx £1bn. The final Polaris/Chevaline patrol took place in 1996, two years after the first Trident-carrying submarine sailed on its first patrol. The Polaris Missile was a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) carrying a nuclear warhead developed during the Cold War for the United States Navy. ... Polaris A-3 on launch pad in Cape Canaveral The Polaris missile was a submarine-launched, two-stage solid-fuel nuclear-armed ballistic missile (SLBM) built during the Cold War by Lockheed for the United States Navy. ... Chevaline Penetration Aid Carrier (warhead platform) on display at RAF Kemble. ... The Resolution class submarines were the first British strategic ballistic missile submarines, carrying the Polaris missile. ... The Polaris Missile was a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) carrying a nuclear warhead developed during the Cold War for the United States Navy. ... JFK redirects here. ... Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC (10 February 1894 â€“ 29 December 1986), was a British Conservative politician and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1957 to 1963. ... The Polaris Missile was a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) carrying a nuclear warhead developed during the Cold War for the United States Navy. ... December 21 is the 355th day of the year (356th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1962 (MCMLXII) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar). ... HMS Resolution (S22) was the first of the Royal Navys Resolution-class ballistic missile submarines. ... June 14 is the 165th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (166th in leap years), with 200 days remaining. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... An anti-ballistic missile (ABM) is a missile designed to counter ballistic missiles. ... Chevaline Penetration Aid Carrier (warhead platform) on display at RAF Kemble. ...

As well as the establishment at Aldermaston, the UK nuclear weapons programme also has a factory at Burghfield nearby which assembled the weapons and is responsible for their maintenance, and had another in Cardiff which fabricated non-fissile components and a 2000 acre (8 km²) test range at Foulness. Since 1993 the sites have been managed by private consortia. The Foulness and Cardiff facilities closed in October 1996 and February 1997 respectively. Burghfield is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. ... Cardiff (English: Welsh: ) is the capital of Wales and its largest city. ... Foulness is an island on the east coast of Essex in England. ...

Trident

The UK currently has four Vanguard class submarines armed with nuclear-tipped Trident missiles. The principle of operation is based on maintaining deterrent effect by always having at least one submarine at sea, and was designed for the Cold War period. One submarine is normally undergoing maintenance and the remaining two in port or on training exercises. It has been suggested that British ballistic missile submarine patrols are coordinated with those of the French.^[27] The Trident missile, named after the trident, is an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which is armed with nuclear warheads and is launched from submarines (SSBNs), making it a SLBM. The Trident was built in two variants: the I (C4) UGM-96A and II (D5) UGM-133A. The C4 and D5... Vanguard Class Submarine Test launch of a Trident D5 SLBM The Royal Navys Vanguard class of nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), each armed with 16 Trident II SLBMs, includes four boats: Vanguard (S28), Victorious (S29), Vigilant (S30), and Vengeance (S31), all built by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd, now... Image File history File links Trident_II_missile_image. ... Image File history File links Trident_II_missile_image. ... The Trident missile, named after the trident, is an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which is armed with nuclear warheads and is launched from submarines (SSBNs), making it a SLBM. The Trident was built in two variants: the I (C4) UGM-96A and II (D5) UGM-133A. The C4 and D5... Vanguard Class Submarine Test launch of a Trident D5 SLBM The Royal Navys Vanguard class of nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), each armed with 16 Trident II SLBMs, includes four boats: Vanguard (S28), Victorious (S29), Vigilant (S30), and Vengeance (S31), all built by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd, now... The Trident missile, named after the trident, is an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which is armed with nuclear warheads and is launched from submarines (SSBNs), making it a SLBM. The Trident was built in two variants: the I (C4) UGM-96A and II (D5) UGM-133A. The C4 and D5... The Cold War was the period of protracted conflict and competition between the United States and the Soviet Union and their allies from the late 1940s until the late 1980s. ...

Each submarine carries 16 Trident II D-5 missiles, which can each carry up to twelve warheads. However, the British government announced in 1998 that each submarine would carry only 48 warheads, an increase of 50% over the 32 warheads carried by Trident's predecessor, Chevaline, (halving the limit specified by the previous government), which is an average of three per missile. However one or two missiles per submarine are probably armed with fewer warheads for "sub-strategic" use causing others to be armed with more; but this is speculative. The Trident missile is an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which is armed with nuclear warheads and is launched from submarines (SSBNs), making it an SLBM. There are 14 active US Ohio class submarines and 4 UK Vanguard class submarines equipped with the two variants of Trident: the initial Trident-I...

The British-designed warheads are thought to be selectable between 0.3 kt, 5-10 kt and 100 kt; the yields obtained using either the unboosted primary, the boosted primary, or the entire "physics package"; although it must be stressed that these yields and similar data are entirely speculative. The true position is unlikely to be known with certainty for many years; as was the case with the misplaced speculation about the earlier Chevaline programme; only now becoming publicly known. Although Britain designed, manufactured and owns the warheads, they were probably based on the US W-76 and W-88 warhead designs, to ensure compatibility with the Trident SLBM. The United Kingdom owns 58 missiles which are shared in a joint pool with the United States government and these are exchanged when requiring maintenance with missiles from the United States Navy's own pool and vice versa. The W76 warhead and Mk-4 reentry vehicle (cutaway diagram) - Los Alamos National Labs image The W76 is a United States thermonuclear warhead. ... In 1999, information came out implying that in some U.S. designs, the primary (top) is prolate, while the secondary (bottom) is spherical. ... USN redirects here. ...

Until August 1998, the UK also retained the WE.177 nuclear weapon manufactured in the 1960s, in air-dropped free-fall bomb and depth charge versions. This left the four Vanguard class submarines, which replaced the Polaris ones in the early 1990s, as the United Kingdom's only nuclear weapons platform. It has been estimated by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists that the United Kingdom has built around 1,200 warheads since the first Hurricane device of 1952. In terms of number of warheads, the British arsenal was at its maximum size of about 350 in the 1970s, but ths figure does not include the large numbers of US-owned warheads, bombs, nuclear depth bombs supplied from US stocks in Europe for use by NATO allies. At its peak, these numbered 327 for the British Army of the Rhine in Germany alone. An inert bomb originally used for training, shown here on its trolley in a museum WE.177 was the last British air-launched nuclear bomb. ... Depth Charge used by U.S. Navy later in World War II The depth charge is the oldest anti-submarine weapon. ... The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists is a journal concerned with global security issues, especially related to the dangers posed nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction. ... The explosion cloud resulting from the Operation Hurricane detonation Operation Hurricane was the test of the first British atomic bomb. ... There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). ...

Vanguard Class Submarine Source: apparently from [1]. The same image (left-right mirrored and larger) also exists at [2]. File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Vanguard Class Submarine Source: apparently from [1]. The same image (left-right mirrored and larger) also exists at [2]. File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

Replacement for Trident

A decision on the replacement of Trident was made on the 4th December 2006. A Trident missile launches from a submerged submarine The British replacement of Trident is a proposed plan to replace the existing nuclear deterrent currently based on four Vanguard class submarines each armed with 16 Trident II Submarine-launched ballistic missiles. ...

Tony Blair has told MPs it would be "unwise and dangerous" for the UK to give up its nuclear weapons. The Prime Minister outlined plans to spend up to £20bn on a new generation of submarines for Trident missiles.

He said submarine numbers may be cut from four to three, while the number of nuclear warheads would be cut by 20% to 160.

Mr Blair said although the Cold War had ended the UK needed nuclear weapons as no-one could be sure another nuclear threat would not emerge in the future.

Timeline

The timeline below shows the development of warheads, nuclear delivery systems and nuclear infrastructure in the UK between 1940 and 2006. Delivery systems are charted to indicate when they were in active service. This does not include development time or decommissioning. Similarly, power plants are charted from when they became active, rather than the date of commissioning or construction. At the end of 1961, the Capenhurst reactor was switched back to low enriched uranium production for civil use. The Magnox electricity producing power stations could produce Plutonium for use in the UK military nuclear programme. Seven other Magnox reactors came online between 1964 and 1971 (see List of Magnox reactors in the UK), although these weren't necessarily used to generate material for warheads. // Enriched uranium is uranium whose uranium-235 content has been increased through the process of isotope separation. ... Schematic diagram of a Magnox nuclear reactor showing gas flow. ... Schematic diagram of a Magnox nuclear reactor showing gas flow. ...

ROF Cardiff was used as part of the nuclear programme from 1961 until its closure in 1997. The Burghfield site was built in 1941 and used for the nuclear programme from the early 1950s to this day. It is now called AWE Burghfield rather than ROF Burghfield.

Deployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons

Until 1992 UK forces also deployed U.S. tactical nuclear weapons as part of a U.S.-UK dual-key NATO nuclear sharing role [2] [3]. The weapons deployed included nuclear artillery, nuclear demolition mines and warheads for Corporal and Lance missiles in Germany; theatre nuclear weapons on RAF aircraft; Mark 101 nuclear depth bombs on RAF Shackleton maritime patrol aircraft, later replaced by a modern successor, the B-57 deployed on RAF Nimrod aircraft. The Lance missiles were purchased in 1975 [4], to replace Honest John missiles which had been bought in 1960 [5]; and were themselves a replacement for the U.S. Corporal missiles deployed in Germany by the Royal Artillery. Not generally recognised is the fact that the Royal Artillery deployed a numerically greater quantity of US nuclear weapons than the RAF and Royal Navy combined, peaking at 277 in 1976-78; with a further 50 ADMs deployed with another British Army unit, the Royal Engineers, peaking in 1971-81.^[28] Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic - President George Walker Bush (R) - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from... NATO 2002 Summit in Prague The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation[1] (NATO), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, the Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for collective security established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, DC, on 4 April 1949. ... Nuclear sharing is a concept in NATOs policy of nuclear deterrence, which involves member countries without nuclear weapons of their own in the planning for the use of nuclear weapons by NATO, and in particular provides for the armed forces of these countries to be involved in delivering these... A nuclear artillery shell is a limited yield nuclear weapon delivered by artillery. ... The MGM-52 Lance was a mobile field artillery tactical surface-to-surface missile system used to provide both nuclear and conventional fire support to the United States Army. ... The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Mk-101 Lulu NDB (Nuclear Depth Bomb). ... A Nuclear Depth Bomb (NDB) is the nuclear equivalent of the conventional depth charge and is used in Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) for attacking submerged submarines. ... The Shackleton was a Royal Air Force long-range patrol bomber developed from the Avro Lincoln bomber with a new fuselage. ... The B57 nuclear bomb was a low-yield tactical nuclear weapon used by the United States during the Cold War. ... The BAE Systems (formerly Hawker-Siddeley) Nimrod maritime patrol aircraft is derived from the De Havilland Comet, the worlds first jet airliner. ... Honest John was a United States short-range missile. ... The American-made Corporal missile was the first guided weapon authorised by the US airforce to carry a nuclear warhead. ... RGA redirects here. ...

Research and development facilities

Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston

The Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE), Aldermaston (formerly the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Aldermaston) is situated just 7 miles north of Basingstoke and approximately 14 miles south-west of Reading, Berkshire, near a village called Aldermaston, bordering with Tadley. It was built in 1949 on the site of a former World War II Royal Air Force base and converted to nuclear weapons research, design and development in the 1950s. Although some early test devices were probably assembled on this site, final assembly of Service-engineered weapons takes place at the nearby site of Burghfield. AWE plc logo The Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston (formerly the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Aldermaston) is situated in the UK, just 7 miles north of Basingstoke and approximately 14 miles south-west of Reading, Berkshire, near a village called Aldermaston, bordering with Tadley. ... Statistics Population: 152,573 (Borough, 2001) Ordnance Survey OS grid reference: SU637523 Administration Borough: Basingstoke and Deane Shire county: Hampshire Region: South East England Constituent country: England Sovereign state: United Kingdom Other Ceremonial county: Hampshire Historic county: Hampshire Services Police force: Hampshire Constabulary Fire and rescue: {{{Fire}}} Ambulance: South Central... Reading is a town and unitary authority (the Borough of Reading) in the English county of Berkshire. ... View of Aldermaston village circa 1959 Aldermaston is a village in the English county of Berkshire, two miles north of Tadley. ... Map sources for Tadley at grid reference SU604612 Tadley is a small town and civil parish in the English county of Hampshire. ... Combatants Major Allied powers: United Kingdom Soviet Union United States Republic of China and others Major Axis powers: Nazi Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Harry Truman Chiang Kai-Shek Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tojo Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead... The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. ...

Royal Ordnance Factories, Cardiff and Burghfield

Other nuclear weapons sites could be found in Cardiff and Burghfield near Reading, Berkshire. These were the only two Royal Ordnance Factories (ROF) not privatised in the 1980s. Cardiff (English: Welsh: ) is the capital of Wales and its largest city. ... Burghfield is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. ... Reading is a town and unitary authority (the Borough of Reading) in the English county of Berkshire. ... Royal Ordnance Factories (ROFs) was the collective name of the UK governments munitions factories in and after World War II. Until privatisation in 1987 they were the responsibility of the Ministry of Supply and later the Ministry of Defence. ...

ROF Cardiff, which closed in 1997, was involved in nuclear weapons programmes since 1961. The site was used for the task of recycling old nuclear weapons and precisely shaping uranium 235 (U235) and metallic beryllium components for the boosted fission devices used as primaries or 'triggers' in modern thermonuclear weapons.^[29] Uranium-235 is an isotope of uranium that differs from the elements other common isotope, uranium-238, by its ability to cause a rapidly expanding fission chain reaction, i. ... General Name, Symbol, Number beryllium, Be, 4 Chemical series alkaline earth metals Group, Period, Block 2, 2, s Appearance white-gray metallic Atomic mass 9. ...

Politics, decision making and nuclear posture

Nuclear posture

UK nuclear posture during the cold war was informed by interdependence with the United States. Operational control of the UK Polaris force was assigned to SACLANT, while targeting policy for its missiles was determined, as for the V-bomber force before it, by NATO's SACEUR, while maintaining an independent wholly-British targeting policy for some circumstances when a critical national emergency required it to be used alone, without the UK's NATO allies.^[30]^[31] In these circumstances, the 'Moscow criterion' referred to the ability of the UK to strike back at the highly-centralised Soviet decision-making apparatus concentrated in the Moscow area, intended to destroy the ability of the Soviet leadership to remain in control of a Soviet Union otherwise untouched. The early beginnings of studies to increase the likelihood of successful penetration of the Polaris warheads to Moscow can be traced back to 1964, ^[32]before the Polaris system was deployed, in order to preserve this capability in the face of anti-ballistic missile batteries around Moscow. These studies later materialised as Chevaline. ^[33]^[34]

The UK has relaxed its nuclear posture since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Labour government's 1998 Strategic Defence Review made a number of reductions from the plans announced by the previous Conservative government:^[35] The Strategic Defence Review (or SDR) was a policy document produced by the Labour Government that came to power in 1997. ...

Current British posture as outlined in the Strategic Defence Review of 1998^[36] is as it has been for many years. Only the delivery methods have changed. Trident SLBMs still provide the long-range strategic element as they have done for some years. Until 1998 the free-fall WE.177A, WE.177B and WE.177C bombs provided an aircraft-delivered sub-strategic option in addition to their designed function of tactical battlefield weapons. With the retirement of WE.177, a sub-strategic warhead is stated by Ministers to be incorporated into some (but not all) Trident missiles deployed. The exact mix of weapons on each submarine is unknown as is the numbers and warhead yield. Current British thinking^{[citation needed]} is that the capacity to launch a very limited strike is a more credible deterrent in the current world situation than use of a MIRVed strategic system.

The special relationship

The 1958 'Agreement For Cooperation on the Uses of Atomic Energy for Mutual Defence Purposes' also known as the 'Mutual Defence Agreement' was renewed in 1994 and again in 2005.^[37] Prime Minister Winston Churchill, (left) with President Franklin Roosevelt, at the 1945 Yalta Conference. ...

Parliament and civil society

The UK's possession of nuclear weapons has appeared essential for successive governments in order to maintain the UK's diplomatic influence abroad; and this policy has had continuous majority support in the population, despite a large number of people opposed to the possession of nuclear weapons. For thirteen years from 1945 until 1958, four years after the first US thermonuclear test in 1952, there was no significant opposition to nuclear weapons in Britain. All significant parts of the Press representing all shades of opinion supported the government's policy, and continued to do so when in 1954 the British government decided to develop and test a thermonuclear weapon. One newspaper, the Guardian, not noted for its support for the then government, or of nuclear weapons in later years, urged the government to go further and develop ballistic missiles, rather than rely on bombers for delivery.^[38] Only in 1958 did the Committee of 100 initiate the first large scale protest with its Aldermaston March. Successive Labour governments, while paying lip-service to nuclear disarmament issues have resolutely maintained and renewed the UK's nuclear forces, with majority popular support. Polaris, Chevaline and the early planning for Trident conducted by the Callaghan Labour government are testament to that. Callaghan went further; he ensured that his government's planning papers for Trident were made available ostensibly 'on national security grounds' to the successor Thatcher government. A most unusual departure from the usual Civil Service procedure. A later Labour Party leader, Neil Kinnock, although a supporter of unilateral nuclear disarmament, changed his stance after the arrival of the Gorbachev regime, on the grounds that a negotiated reduction in nuclear arms was then possible. Perhaps Kinnock also had understood the reality; that a unilateralist Labour Party would never be elected to government. The New Labour administration of Tony Blair also recognised that reality. In the near future, decisions about the replacement of Trident will need to be made (because of the long lead time before a replacement could enter service). It seems that the current Labour government will decide to replace Trident - although some believe that there may be some legal issues relating to the non-proliferation treaty. More likely, because the 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement often referred to as the 1958 Bi-lateral, is still in force (and renewed 2005) and pre-dates the Non-Proliferation Treaty, it will be used to justify further legal purchases from the U.S., and further exchanges of data. Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... The Labour Party has been, since its founding in the early 20th century, the principal political party of the left in the United Kingdom. ... The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is a treaty, opened for signature on July 1, 1968, restricting the possession of nuclear weapons. ... The 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement is a bilateral treaty between the US and the UK on nuclear weapons cooperation. ...

The current Trident system cost £12.6bn (at 1996 prices) and costs £280m a year to maintain. Options for replacing Trident range from £5bn for the missiles alone to £20-30bn for missiles, submarines and research facilities. At minimum, for the system to continue safely after around 2020, the missiles will need to be replaced.[6]

Contents

Number of warheads

Weapons tests

Nuclear defence

Warning systems

Attack scenarios

Civil defence

Weapons programmes

Tube Alloys and Manhattan Project

Post-war development programme

First test and early systems

Thermonuclear weaponry

Polaris

Trident

Replacement for Trident

Timeline

Deployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons

Research and development facilities

Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston

Royal Ordnance Factories, Cardiff and Burghfield

Politics, decision making and nuclear posture

Nuclear posture

The special relationship

Parliament and civil society

See also

Footnotes

Further reading

External links

Contents

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Weapons tests

Nuclear defence

Warning systems

Attack scenarios

Civil defence

Weapons programmes

Tube Alloys and Manhattan Project

Post-war development programme

First test and early systems

Thermonuclear weaponry

Polaris

Trident

Replacement for Trident

Timeline

Deployment of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons

Research and development facilities

Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston

Royal Ordnance Factories, Cardiff and Burghfield

Politics, decision making and nuclear posture

Nuclear posture

The special relationship

Parliament and civil society

See also

Footnotes

Further reading

External links

Number of warheads