H-912 transport container for Mk-54 SADM

The Special Atomic Demolition Munition (SADM) was a United States Navy and Marines project that was demonstrated as feasible in the mid-to-late 1960s, but was never used. The project, which involved a small nuclear weapon, was designed to allow one individual to parachute from any type of aircraft carrying the weapon package and place it in a harbor or other strategic location that could be accessed from the sea. Another parachutist without a weapon package would follow the first to provide support as needed. H-912 transport container for SADM at the National Atomic Museum. ... The United States Navy (USN) is the branch of the United States armed forces responsible for naval operations. ... United States Marine Corps Emblem The United States Marine Corps (USMC) is a branch of the U.S. military. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 km (11 mi) above the hypocenter. ... The Apollo 15 capsule landed safely despite a parachute failure. ...

The two-man team would place the weapon package in the target location, set the timer, and swim out into the ocean where they would be retrieved by a submarine or a high-speed surface water craft. The parachute jumps and the retrieval procedures were practiced extensively. HMS Vanguard, a Vanguard-class nuclear ballistic missile (SSBN) submarine HMCS Windsor, a Victoria-class diesel-electric hunter-killer (SSK) submarine HMAS Rankin, a Collins-class diesel-electric guided missile (SSG) submarine USS Virginia, a Virginia-class nuclear attack (SSN) submarine A submarine is a specialized watercraft that can operate...

In the 1950s and 1960s, the United States developed several different types of lightweight nuclear devices. The main one was the W54, a cylinder 40 by 60 centimeters that weighed 68 kilograms (the warhead was a variation of one developed for the Davy Crockett nuclear recoilless rifle). It was fired by a mechanical timer and had a variable yield ("dial-a-yield") equivalent to between 10 tons and 1 kiloton of TNT. 300 SADMs were assembled and remained in the US arsenal until 1989. // Events and trends This map shows two essential global spheres during the Cold War in 1959. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... The W54 was a small nuclear warhead designed by the United States Government. ... Davy Crockett mounted to a recoilless rifle on a tripod The M-388 Davy Crockett was a tactical nuclear recoilless rifle projectile that was deployed by the United States during the Cold War. ... M67 recoilless rifle The first effective recoilless rifles (RCL) were developed during World War II as a lightweight form of anti-tank weaponry. ... The explosive yield of a nuclear weapon is the amount of energy discharged when the weapon explodes, expressed in the equivalent mass of trinitrotoluene (TNT), either in kilotons (thousands of tons of TNT) or megatons (million of tons of TNT). ... Dial-a-yield, an option available on most modern nuclear bombs, allows the operator to specify a bombs yield, or explosive power, allowing a single design to be used in different situations. ... A megaton or megatonne is a unit of mass equal to 1,000,000 metric tons, i. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also Suitcase bomb Suitcase with hypothetical nuclear weapon mock-up inside A suitcase bomb is a bomb which uses a suitcase as its delivery method. ...

Popular Culture

In the video game Splinter Cell, a SADM known as "The Ark" is used by Georgian terrorists to threaten the United States. A computer game is a game composed of a computer-controlled virtual universe that players interact with in order to achieve a defined goal or set of goals. ... Tom Clancys Splinter Cell is a critically-acclaimed stealth-based video game, developed by Ubisoft Montreal. ... Terrorism is the unconventional use of violence for political gain. ...

External links

• SADM Delivery by Parachutist/Swimmer (Special Atomic Demolition Munition) Film Clip
• image of the SADM