# Atomic bomb lost Off Georgia in 1958? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 2, 2004, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196 "2004-10-02T14:03:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/1 "2004-10-02T14:03:30Z")
There was abrief article in the newspaper yeaterday, about a guy who belives he knows where a missing aromic bomb is, in the ocean off georgia. This bomb was said to have been dropped by an air force bomber in 1958. I can’t seem to find any info on such an incident…is this loss officially acknowledged? And, what happens to an a-bomb in slt water-would the plutonium eventually dissolve, and contaminate a large area? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/2 "2004-10-02T14:08:29Z")
I have heard nothing about a nuke off of Georgia; but considering the effort put forth to recover a hydrogen bomb off of Spain in the late-1950s (I think), it would seem unlikely that one off of the U.S. coast would have been A) unrecovered; and B) unknown to so many people. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/3 "2004-10-02T14:13:21Z")
It’s **not** unknown. Especially on this Board. There are several threads on this wandering firecracker. Search for Savannah river device. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/4 "2004-10-02T14:17:44Z")
I stand corrected, then. I’ve never heard of it. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/5 "2004-10-02T14:35:10Z")
[Here](http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/10/01/lost.bomb.ap/index.html) is a CNN article about it. > [@](#): > > A crippled B-47 bomber dumped the 7,600-pound H-bomb into the Wassaw Sound near Savannah after the plane collided with a fighter jet during a training flight. At the time, the military searched for 10 weeks and finally pronounced the bomb irretrievable. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/6 "2004-10-02T14:59:26Z")
[American Sea Shore Underwater Recovery Expedition](http://www.bredl.org/info/2001/ASSURE021501.htm) > [@](#): > > American Sea Shore Underwater Recovery Expedition (ASSURE) will present its recommendations regarding the missing thermonuclear bomb in Savannah River harbor on 7 p.m. Thursday evening, February 15th, at the Tybee Island City Hall; 403 Butler Avenue; Tybee Island, Georgia. ASSURE recommends that the missing nuclear bomb be located as soon as possible, and discussion and analysis begin immediately to determine the feasible alternatives for addressing the radiation and explosive hazards posed by the bomb. > > “The U.S. has spent millions of dollars finding lost nuclear weapons in foreign countries. The only thing Savannah residents can believe at this point is that this bomb needs to be found,” said Derek Duke, a Retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and President of ASSURE. > > The missing nuclear bomb is an “MK-15, Mod 0,”1 the first thermonuclear bomb deployed in the United States. The MK-15 was a “Teller-Ulam”2 thermonuclear design with an explosive power of 1.6 to 3.0 megatons–about 100 times the explosive power of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II. The U.S. deployed 1200 MK-15’s in its nuclear arsenal between 1955 and 1965. > > The thermonuclear bomb has been missing since February 5, 1958, the day a B-47 aircraft carrying the bomb suffered a mid-air collision with an F-86 aircraft above Sylvania, Georgia. According to official reports, the damaged B-47 jettisoned the bomb into the water off the mouth of the Savannah River after unsuccessfully attempting to land with the bomb. A subsequent search failed to locate the bomb and officially ended on April 14, 1958. Forty-three years later, the Government still considers the bomb “irretrievably lost.” ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/7 "2004-10-02T15:06:43Z")
So if I were to come across this bomb, it would be legally mine? ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/8 "2004-10-02T15:16:19Z")
> [@qts](#): > > So if I were to come across this bomb, it would be legally mine? _Yeaaah_… it’d be all yours! Make it into a tourist attraction! “Yeeehhhaaa! Ride the Bomb!” ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2004, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/9 "2004-10-02T15:22:52Z")
You could re-enact the last scene of _Dr. Strangelove_… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/10 "2004-10-03T08:25:19Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > And, what happens to an a-bomb in slt water-would the plutonium eventually dissolve, and contaminate a large area? The bomb in question, a Mk-15 Mod 0, did not have the capsule installed when it was jettisoned. The capsule contains the plutonium pit that is used to initiate the fission reaction in the bomb. The bomb was a thermonuclear device (fission-fusion-fission) with a jacket of highly-enriched uranium. The bomb can’t be detonated unless a capsule is installed. Plutonium corrodes very easily, producing plutonium oxide. This could produce a contamination problem if the bomb casing broke up on impact or if the high explosives in the bomb were accidentally detonated. The highly-enriched uranium in the bomb jacket is a proliferation concern. It can be used to make fission weapons, either implosion or gun-assembly. With enough highly-enriched uranium, it is relatively easy to build a gun-assembly fission device like the “Little Boy” bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima. References: [ASSURE Press Release 2001-02-14](http://www.bredl.org/info/2001/ASSURE021501.htm) [Surface and Corrosion Chemistry of PLUTONIUM](http://www.fas.org/sgp/othergov/doe/lanl/pubs/00818031.pdf) ---
**Author:** ![jester21](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ed655f/32.png) [@jester21](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jester21)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/11 "2004-10-03T14:08:53Z")
I’ve seen news reports of peeps spending MILLIONS to look for a sunk Civil war era sub (U.S.S. Huntley, i believe) … why isn’t anyone looking for a Nuke?! ---
**Author:** ![threemae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f9b8f/32.png) [@threemae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/threemae)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/12 "2004-10-03T18:21:39Z")
> [@jester21](#): > > I’ve seen news reports of peeps spending MILLIONS to look for a sunk Civil war era sub (U.S.S. Huntley, i believe) … why isn’t anyone looking for a Nuke?! [Sets aside bag of Dorritos, wipes hand on shorts, looks for a T-shirt and grabs flipflops] I’m going, I’m going, chill! ---
**Author:** ![bonzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@bonzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonzer)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/13 "2004-10-03T20:16:28Z")
> [@jester21](#): > > why isn’t anyone looking for a Nuke?! As most of the current news stories make clear, the current interest is the result of searches by a guy called Derek Duke. He was the subject of [this article](http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/prem/200107/donahue) (subscription required) in _The Atlantic_ back in 2001. He doesn’t seem to have a website, but [he has endorsed](http://www.tybeetyme.com/tb/derek_duke_interview.htm) a rather scaremongering [website about the missing bomb](http://www.tybeetyme.com/tb/main.htm). As for why the US government hasn’t been too bothered up to now, I’ll repeat what I said the last time the issue came up on the board: over the years governments have _deliberately_ dumped plenty of dangerous old munitions at sea, often creating hazards in the process. The odd accidental loss isn’t something they’d greatly worry about if there’s no particular risk of it going off. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/14 "2004-10-03T20:21:11Z")
> [@qts](#): > > So if I were to come across this bomb, it would be legally mine? For about 30 seconds until the men in black helicopters show up, shoot you, and take the bomb. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/15 "2004-10-03T20:33:41Z")
[http://archives.postandcourier.com/archive/arch04/0204/arc02081574705.shtml](http://archives.postandcourier.com/archive/arch04/0204/arc02081574705.shtml) [http://archives.postandcourier.com/archive/arch04/0704/arc07211832205.shtml](http://archives.postandcourier.com/archive/arch04/0704/arc07211832205.shtml) ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/16 "2004-10-03T20:55:50Z")
> [@threemae](#): > > > [@jester21](#): > > > > I’ve seen news reports of peeps spending MILLIONS to look for a sunk Civil war era sub (U.S.S. Huntley, i believe) … why isn’t anyone looking for a Nuke?! > > [Sets aside bag of Dorritos, wipes hand on shorts, looks for a T-shirt and grabs flipflops] > > I’m going, I’m going, chill! **Northern Piper** on cell to his wife: “Honey, I can’t rake the leaves today, or do that grocery run you asked me to. I promised **threemae** I’d help him with that nuclear bomb thing, and he says he has to get it done today. … Yeah, I know, he’s put it off a while… Yeah, he could have given me a bit more warning that, but I promised him I’d help… okay, see you at six.” ---
**Author:** ![HPL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3da27b/32.png) [@HPL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HPL)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/17 "2004-10-03T21:40:40Z")
> [@qts](#): > > So if I were to come across this bomb, it would be legally mine? It may, but don’t be surprised if a bunch of UN Weapon Inspectors come by one day to inspect your weapons of mass destruction. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/18 "2004-10-03T21:56:44Z")
> [@HPL](#): > > It may, but don’t be surprised if a bunch of UN Weapon Inspectors come by one day to inspect your weapons of mass destruction. I got yer Weapon Of Mass Destruction right here! 😉😃 Always available for the ladies to inspect, too! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/19 "2004-10-03T22:50:30Z")
**Tuckerfan** : I just read your sig. I caught it. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2004, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196/20 "2004-10-03T22:57:18Z")
> [@Johnny L.A.](#): > > **Tuckerfan** : I just read your sig. I caught it. 😃 Caught what? 😉 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/atomic-bomb-lost-off-georgia-in-1958/267196.md?page=2)