Britain and the H-Bomb
This book, written with unique access to official archives, tells the secret story of Britain's H-bomb - the scientific and strategic background, the government's policy decision, the work of the remarkable men who created the bomb, the four weapon trials
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Also by Lorna Arnold A VERY SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP: British Atomic Weapons Trials in Australia WINDSCALE 1957: Anatomy of a Nuclear Accident
Britain and the H-Bomb Lorna Arnold with Katherine Pyne
Foreword by Professor Lawrence Freedman
palgrave macmillan
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© The Ministry of Defence 2001 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1 P OLP. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2001 by PALGRAVE Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N. Y. 10010 Companies and representatives throughout the world PALGRAVE is the new global academic imprint of Press LLC Scholarly and Reference Division and Palgrave Publishers Ltd (formerly Macmillan Press Ltd).
st. Martin's
Outside North America ISBN 978-0-333-94742-5 ISBN 978-0-230-59977-2 (eBook) DOI 10.1057/9780230599772
This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Arnold, Lorna. Britain and the H-Bomb I Lorna Arnold; foreword by Lawrence Freedman. p.cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-312-23518-5 1. Hydrogen bomb-Great Britain. 2. Great Britain-Military policy. I. Title. UG1282.A8A762000 355.8'25119'0941-dc21 00-036898
To David Holloway in admiration and friendship
Contents List of Plates
ix
Foreword by Lawrence Freedman
x
Preface
PART I
xi
SETTING THE AGENDA
1 Stellar forces 2 The first superbomb project - the United States 3 The second superbomb project - the Soviet Union
PART II 4 5
14 15
71
84 95 108
THE PACIFIC TRIALS
10 The first trial - Grapple 11 'We shall have to do it all again' - Grapple X 12 Britain's biggest explosion - Grapple Y 13 Mission accomplished - Grapple Z
PART V
35 58
BRITAIN'S RESPONSE
6 Aldermaston and the weaponeers 7 The megaton mission 8 Captain Cook's coral island 9 Racing against time
PART IV
6 23
BRITAIN AND THE THERMONUCLEAR QUESTION
What must Britain do? A general instruction from the government
PART III
3
131 151 165 176
A SPECIAL NUCLEAR RELATIONSHIP
The great prize Some questions and answers
195 221
APPENDICES Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Appendix 3 Appendix 4 Appendix 5
Technical note Summa
