Sedan Crater
Encyclopedia
Sedan Crater is the result of the Sedan
nuclear test and is located within the Nevada Test Site
. The crater was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
on March 21, 1994. The crater is a man-made object that can be seen from earth orbit with the unaided eye.
The crater is the result of the displacement of 12 million short tons (6.5 million cubic yards) of earth. Over 10,000 visitors per year visit the crater through free monthly tours offered by the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration
Nevada Site Office.
visited Sedan in November 1970. Astronauts for Apollo 16
and 17
also trained at the NTS craters in 1971 and 1972 Of the first 12 Americans that walked on the moon, 11 of them trained at the Nevada Test Site
.
Sedan (nuclear test)
Storax Sedan was a shallow underground nuclear test conducted in Area 10 of Yucca Flat at the Nevada National Security Site on 6 July 1962 as part of Operation Plowshare, a program to investigate the use of nuclear weapons for mining, cratering, and other civilian purposes...
nuclear test and is located within the Nevada Test Site
Nevada Test Site
The Nevada National Security Site , previously the Nevada Test Site , is a United States Department of Energy reservation located in southeastern Nye County, Nevada, about northwest of the city of Las Vegas...
. The crater was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on March 21, 1994. The crater is a man-made object that can be seen from earth orbit with the unaided eye.
The crater is the result of the displacement of 12 million short tons (6.5 million cubic yards) of earth. Over 10,000 visitors per year visit the crater through free monthly tours offered by the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration
National Nuclear Security Administration
The United States National Nuclear Security Administration is part of the United States Department of Energy. It works to improve national security through the military application of nuclear energy...
Nevada Site Office.
History
The 1280 by crater was created on July 6, 1962 by a 104-kiloton-of-TNT (435 TJ) nuclear explosion. Because the craters at the NTS had features similar to the topography of Moon craters, Astronauts for Apollo 14Apollo 14
Apollo 14 was the eighth manned mission in the American Apollo program, and the third to land on the Moon. It was the last of the "H missions", targeted landings with two-day stays on the Moon with two lunar EVAs, or moonwalks....
visited Sedan in November 1970. Astronauts for Apollo 16
Apollo 16
Young and Duke served as the backup crew for Apollo 13; Mattingly was slated to be the Apollo 13 command module pilot until being pulled from the mission due to his exposure to rubella through Duke.-Backup crew:...
and 17
Apollo 17
Apollo 17 was the eleventh and final manned mission in the American Apollo space program. Launched at 12:33 a.m. EST on December 7, 1972, with a three-member crew consisting of Commander Eugene Cernan, Command Module Pilot Ronald Evans, and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt, Apollo 17 remains the...
also trained at the NTS craters in 1971 and 1972 Of the first 12 Americans that walked on the moon, 11 of them trained at the Nevada Test Site
Nevada Test Site
The Nevada National Security Site , previously the Nevada Test Site , is a United States Department of Energy reservation located in southeastern Nye County, Nevada, about northwest of the city of Las Vegas...
.
Crater Statistics
| Maximum depth | 320 feet | 100 meters |
| Maximum diameter | 1280 feet | 390 meters |
| Volume | 6.6 million cubic yards | 5 million cubic meters |
| Weight of material lifted | 12 million short tons | 10 million tons |
| Maximum lip height | 100 feet | 30 meters |
| minimum lip height | 20 feet | 6 meters |