In Ekker was a series of 13
underground nuclear tests
Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine the performance of nuclear weapons and the effects of Nuclear explosion, their explosion. Nuclear testing is a sensitive political issue. Governments have often performed tests to si ...
and five complementary subcritical atmospheric experiments by
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
between November 1961 and February 1966.
The bombs were detonated at the Oasis Military Experiments Centre (Centre d'expérimentation militaire des oasis ) also named CEMO near
In Ekker,
French Algeria
French Algeria ( until 1839, then afterwards; unofficially ; ), also known as Colonial Algeria, was the period of History of Algeria, Algerian history when the country was a colony and later an integral part of France. French rule lasted until ...
at the Tan Afella in the
Hoggar Mountains
The Hoggar Mountains (; Berber: ''idurar n Ahaggar'') are a highland region in the central Sahara in southern Algeria, along the Tropic of Cancer. The mountains cover an area of approximately 550,000 km2.
The Hoggar Mountains are home to ...
, by the Nuclear Experiments Operational Group (GOEN), a unit of the Joint Special Weapons Command. At the beginning of the test series, the area was controlled by France as part of French Algeria, which was in the midst of its
war of independence
Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...
. While Algeria won its independence in 1962, the tests were controversially allowed to continue until 1966 as part of the
peace treaty
A peace treaty is an treaty, agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually country, countries or governments, which formally ends a declaration of war, state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice, which is an ag ...
.
The series saw the explosion of the first
AN-11/21 bombs and was followed by the
1966–1970 series. The tests remain controversial for their continued impact on the region.
Codenames
The 13 underground operations were named after jewel stones, while the 5
AN-11/21 bombs tests were designated as ''Pollen I'', ''Pollen Rose'', ''Pollen Rouge'', ''Pollen Safran'' and ''Pollen Jonquille''.
List of tests
See also
*
List of nuclear weapons tests of France
France executed nuclear weapons tests in the areas of Reggane and In Ekker in Algeria and the Mururoa and Fangataufa Atolls in French Polynesia, from 13 February 1960 through 27 January 1996. These totaled 210 tests with 210 device explos ...
*
Nuclear weapons and France
France is one of the five "Nuclear Weapons States" under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, but is not known to possess or develop any chemical or biological weapons. France is the only member of the European Union to posses ...
* ''
Force de Frappe
The ''Force de dissuasion'' (), known as the ''Force de frappe'' ('Strike Force') prior to 1961,Gunston, Bill. Bombers of the West. New York: Charles Scribner's and Sons; 1973. p104 is the French nuclear deterrence force. The ''Force de dissua ...
''
*
History of nuclear weapons
Building on major scientific breakthroughs made during the 1930s, the United Kingdom began the world's first nuclear weapons research project, codenamed Tube Alloys, in 1941, during World War II. The United States, in collaboration with the Uni ...
Notes
References
{{Nuclear weapons tests of France
-
Algeria–France military relations
1960s in Algeria
1960s in France
1960s in politics
1960s in military history
1961 beginnings
1966 endings