OPERATION SUNBEAM, SHOT SMALL BOY. Project Officer's Report. Project 2.9. Fallout Collection and Gross Sample Analysis

The objectives of this project were to (1) make quantitative collections of fallout in order to determine mass per unit area, ionization decay rate, and gamma ray spectra, size activity distribution and size distribution versus time of deposit; (2) measure during fallout, the deposition dynamics of arrival time, mass deposition rate, and time of cessation; (3) determine the size distribution and concentration of airborne fallout debris as a function of time after bursts and to measure the amount and size distribution of that fraction penetrating test ventilation intake configurations; and (4) estimate visibility, near ground level, in the dust cloud produced by blast and shock. The quality and kinds of measurements made on this operation were considerably improved over previous weapon test field work as a result of the experience gained by project personnel over the years. Sufficient data were obtained to satisfy most to the project objectives.