The Atomic Cannon

[Cdnwolf]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTdy1Yp1h5A&feature=related


The Atomic Cannon, at 280 mm, was the largest nuclear capable mobile artillery piece manufactured by the United States. On May 25, 1953, a 280 mm cannon fired an atomic projectile a distance of 7 miles at the Nevada Test Site. Twenty 280 mm cannons were manufactured. None were used in battle.

[pmulcahy11b]

What was the yield for Atomic Annie's shells? 7 miles sounds uncomfortably close...:(

[Antenna]

The cannon according to me had beter range. But then there was no much numbers of them so never published the factfile.

Antenna

[Matt Wiser]

Weapon yield for the 280-mm shell (that's an 11-incher, btw, same caliber as the German pocket battleships and the two battlecruisers in WW II), was 15 KT. The movie Trinity and Beyond: The Atomic Bomb Movie has the test shot included. Note that this is the same movie that at the end has the first Chinese test, with cheering crowds hollering at the sight of the fireball and cloud, and horse cavalry in NBC suits (yes, the horses had MOPP suits and masks) charging ground zero-even waving cavalry sabers as they did so.

[Fusilier]

What was the yield for Atomic Annie's shells? 7 miles sounds uncomfortably close...:(

That is what the duck and cover is for lol.

[kota1342000]

Weapon yield for the 280-mm shell (that's an 11-incher, btw, same caliber as the German pocket battleships and the two battlecruisers in WW II), was 15 KT. The movie Trinity and Beyond: The Atomic Bomb Movie has the test shot included. Note that this is the same movie that at the end has the first Chinese test, with cheering crowds hollering at the sight of the fireball and cloud, and horse cavalry in NBC suits (yes, the horses had MOPP suits and masks) charging ground zero-even waving cavalry sabers as they did so.

Its funny you mention this movie, I just recently watched it. The footage from the 280mm shot was pretty impressive. As was a lot of the footage from several of the other shots in Nevada and the Pacific.
But the Chinese footage just kind of smacked me in the head. NBC gear for the friggin horses?? How much training did those people think the horses are going to need to not flip out on a nuclear battlefield?
Of course I had a lot of questions like that about different parts of the movie...

[mikeo80]

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ground/m65.htm

According to this web site's review of "Atomic Annie", the canon had a 20 mile range. The warhead that was tested was a 15 kiloton blast.

http://nuclearsecrecy.com/nukemap/

Based on this website posted earlier here in another part of the forum, a 15 KT has a known death radius of about 1.3 - 2.0 miles. So IF you are 7 miles from BANG, you have a chance to live.

I WOULD NOT WANT TO BE 7 MILES FROM BANG!!!!!!! :p

So I guess, the math works as far as the survivablilty.

My $0.02

Mike

[ArmySGT.]

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j218/ArmySGT_photos/Makes%20me%20laugh/Insults/nuclearcannon.gif

[kota1342000]

I wonder how many nuclear projectiles have actually been shot from artillery before the test bans. Think of the bragging rights for the crews! LOL

[mikeo80]

I wonder how many nuclear projectiles have actually been shot from artillery before the test bans. Think of the bragging rights for the crews! LOL

As far as I have read, there was only the one test round. I guess they wanted to make sure the damned thing actually worked!!

My $0.02

Mike

[Matt Wiser]

The first 8" rounds may have been test-fired, or those may have been training shapes to see if the shell was aerodynamic enough, while the actual shell was detonated from a tower (a la Trinity) or underground. The Soviets probably shot a few of their atomic shells at their test ranges in the '50s, I'd reckon.

[JHart]

Wouldn't you want to be a FO for it!

"SHOT OVER"

"SHOT OUT"


(Small thermonuclear device goes off)

"ADD 50 AND FIRE FOR EFFECT!!!"

[Matt Wiser]

Actually, both NATO and the Soviets used conventional HE rounds to fire their registration shots before firing the nuclear round. Say you have an 8-inch battery (M-110s) that has received a nuclear fire mission. The FO would be notified, and the battery would fire a conventional round to start the process. Then once the conventional round lands on the aiming point, the nuclear round is fired. Or at least, that's what some of the books on a potentional WW III said in the '80s.