The primary use of nuclear bombs is as weapons. They are compact and extremely powerful. However, conventional explosives find use in civilian applications such as excavations for mining and construction. Early in the history of nuclear explosives, the suggestion was made that they might have use for such peaceful purposes.
The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission had worked during the 1950s to convince the American public that atomic research and development was important for many civilian uses such as nuclear medicine and nuclear power generation. However, the Korean War and the Cold War had created an atmosphere of fear around nuclear science because of the threat of nuclear annihilation. The U.S. government wanted to counter that fear by encouraging the public to believe that the use of atomic bombs could be valuable for civilian projects. They needed to maintain the public’s confidence and support for pouring money into nuclear research much of which aided nuclear weapon research.
Operation Plowshare (or Project Plowshare) was a child of Eisenhower’s Atoms for Peace program. The project was formally launched in 1957. In 1960, Eisenhower’s Vice President delivered a speech in which he discussed the new. He touted the great possibilities of what he called “atomic dynamite” for moving mountains and digging harbors and canals.
In 1961, Operation Plowshare began testing nuclear bombs for the purpose of earth moving by underground detonation. The idea was to control the placement and size of craters to enabled controlled earthmoving for such things as harbors and canals, mountain passes, earth dams and underground storage caves for water or natural gas. Potential projects were brought forward such as carving a harbor into the coastline of Alaska and digging an alternative to the Panama Canal between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean. Another possible idea was that nuclear blasts underground could release natural gas locked in the rock or “atomic” fracking. Between 1961 to 1973, 27 atomic bombs were exploded as part of Operation Plowshare, most of them at the Nevada Test site.
Unfortunately, it turned out that even underground explosions resulted in release of radioactive materials into the atmosphere. Exact control of the dimensions of the craters were difficult. Underground nuclear explosions to extract natural gas were not as productive as anticipated and residual radioactivity contaminated the gas released. Underground explosions can contaminate underground water threatening supplies for human consumptions and irrigation. Underground nuclear explosions could also aggravate faults lines causing earthquakes.
Operation Plowshare failed to produce useful results and there was a public backlash against the use nuclear bombs within the borders of the United States, especially near concentrations of population. The last test explosion was in 1973 and all funding ended in 1977. It is estimated that over seven hundred and seventy million dollars was spent during the life of the project. To date, the U.S government has not made public any consideration of further use of atomic bombs for civilian purposes.
Operation Plowshare test crater:
