Technology Provides Glimpse Of Impact On USS Gilliam From A Nuclear Bomb

What happens when a ship takes a direct hit from a nuclear bomb? Nat Geo researchers have explored the Bikini Atoll to examine the wreckage of US Navy vessels destroyed during nuclear testing in the 1940s and 1950s. The new season of ‘Drain the Oceans’ utilizes amazing technology to virtually remove the ocean from around the vessels lying at the bottom to provide a very revealing, detailed 3D rendering.

Thankfully, the world has not had many opportunities to experience a horrific nuclear attack firsthand. However, the United States conducted tests of its nascent atomic bomb efforts nearly 75 years ago in Bikini Atoll.

Between 1946 and 1954, 80 million tons of nuclear power were dropped on Bikini Atoll, leaving over a dozen battleships, submarines and even an aircraft carrier on the sea bed. The United States military wanted to determine if it was possible to sink a whole navy flotilla with one bomb. It was not. The United States detonated a total of 23 atomic bombs at Bikini Atoll—on land, in the water, and in the air—to study the impact and damage. One of those tests resulted in the USS Gilliam taking a direct hit.

The ship sank immediately, but the question remained, “What happens to a US Navy ship when it is exposed to temperatures hotter than the surface of the Sun?”

Due to the massive amounts of radioactive fallout, Bikini Atoll has been unsafe and uninhabitable for the most part since those tests. The water is now safe to dive in, though, with appropriate precautions, which allowed Nat Geo explorers to venture in to examine the wreckage and analyze how the direct hit affected the ship.

The first thing they discovered is that they could not even determine which way the ship was oriented based on the mangled, melted pile of metal they found. Using cutting edge cameras and technology, though, the team was able to create a detailed 3D rendering and effectively drain the ocean from around the vessel so they could examine it more closely.

Check out this exclusive clip of the USS Gilliam:

For more on the impact and affect of nuclear bombs on US Navy vessels, check out the new season of Drain the Oceans. The third season premiers on Nat Geo Tuesday, May 5 at 9pm Eastern / 8pm Central.