TEST B: UNDERWATER EXPLOSION 



approach the ships on which the test animals were lo- 

 cated. Fortunately this situation had been allowed 

 for in advance : the animals had been given sufficient 

 food and water to last for at least ten days. In fact 

 all surviving animals had small supi^lies of food re- 

 maining at the time the ships were reboarded. 



The animals were found to have suffered very little 

 from shock, and of course, none from heat or light. 



But radioactivity took a heavy toll. Some of the 

 animals had died from radioactivity even before the 

 ships were reboarded. Many others died later. All the 

 pigs died as a result of exposure to nuclear radiations. 

 Many rats died from the same cause, but a number were 

 still alive in late September, 1946. 



As before, exposure to gamma radiation ])roduced 

 a variety of symptoms, including general apathy, weak- 

 ness, and tendency to develop secondary infections. 

 But it should be remembered that radiation sickness 

 is essentiall,y painless ; and in the case of animals, vic- 

 tims have no mental anguish such as would presumably 

 assail human beings. The animal languishes and either 

 recovers or dies a painless death. Suffering among the 

 animals as a whole was negligible. By studying them 

 we have gained knowledge as to what dangers might 

 confront men and what steps would minimize the 

 injury. 



The degree of radioactive poisoning of water and 

 ships was impressive. The total amount of radioactive 

 materials released was initially equivalent to hundreds 



67 



