A Single Switch Stopped a Nuclear Blast on US Soil ☢️

[!NOTE] Historical File: A Single Switch Stopped a Nuclear Blast on US Soil ☢️ Location: USA | Era: Archival History | Format: Documentary & Narrative Record

The Untold Story

In January 1961, a B-52 bomber broke apart in mid-air over North Carolina, dropping two multi-megaton hydrogen bombs.

Each weapon had over two hundred and fifty times the explosive power of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

As the first bomb plummeted toward the ground, three of its four separate arming mechanisms activated one by one.

Mark 39 H-Bomb, Jan 24, 1961 • 3.8 Megatons of explosive power • 3 of 4 arming steps triggered • One toggle switch prevented detonation

A single low-voltage cockpit switch was the only safety mechanism that did not fail, preventing a catastrophic nuclear blast.

The military recovered the first weapon, but the uranium core of the second was buried so deep it remains under that North Carolina soil.

Historical Discussion

💭 In 2013, declassified documents revealed that Defense Secretary Robert McNamara admitted the two bombs came as close to detonating as any accidental incident in Cold War history. The secondary uranium core of the second bomb was never recovered due to swamp flooding and remains buried ~100 feet underground in that North Carolina field today.

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