Operation Crosstie

Operation Crosstie
Crosstie Buggy, a row excavation test using five detonations in a row
Information
Country	United States
Test site	Central Nevada; near Farmington, New Mexico; NTS Area 12, Rainier Mesa; NTS Area 19, 20, Pahute Mesa; NTS Area 30, Dome Mountain; NTS Areas 5, 11, Frenchman Flat; NTS, Areas 1-4, 6-10, Yucca Flat
Period	1967-1968
Number of tests	48
Test type	cratering, underground shaft, underground tunnel
Max. yield	1.3 megatonnes of TNT (5.4 PJ)
Navigation
Previous test series	Operation Latchkey
Next test series	Operation Bowline

Operation Crosstie was a series of 48 nuclear tests conducted by the United States in 1967–1968 at the Nevada Test Site. These tests followed the Operation Latchkey series and preceded the Operation Bowline series.

The blast designated Gasbuggy involved an underground detonation, intended to stimulate production of natural gas by cracking the rock in the underground formation of its deposit. The test proceeded as expected, but not only did the production not increase as much as expected, but the customers also refused to buy gas contaminated with traces of radioisotopes.

Buggy was a Plowshare test designed to excavate a channel. It was a simultaneous detonation of 5 devices, placed 150 feet (46 m) apart and 150 feet (46 m) below the surface that resulted in a channel 300 feet (91 m) wide, 900 feet long, and 80 feet (24 m) deep . Or 65 feet deep and 254 feet wide, according to Declassified U.S. film.

The USSR conducted a similar salvo-test to investigate the use of nuclear explosions in the construction of the Pechora–Kama Canal project. On March 23, 1971, three simultaneously detonated 15 kiloton underground nuclear charges were exploded in the Taiga test.

The Faultless test was a calibration test conducted in a mine cavity 3,200 feet beneath the Hot Creek Valley near Tonopah, Nevada, with a yield of around 1 megaton. This test was conducted to see if the land was fit for testing a 5 megaton thermonuclear warhead for the Spartan missile. The test failed because of the large degree of faulting that resulted in the area around the test. It was decided that the land was unfit for multi-megaton nuclear tests, so a similar calibration test was conducted at Amchitka Island, Alaska, in the fall of 1969 during Operation Mandrel.