1958, the US secretly detonated 3 nuclear devices 100–500 km above the South Atlantic

1958, the US secretly detonated 3 nuclear devices In August and September 1958, the United States military carried out a secret series of high-altitude nuclear tests in the remote upper reaches of the South Atlantic Ocean. Code-named Operation Argus, the operation involved launching three low-yield nuclear devices between 100 and 500 kilometres into space. The explosions created artificial auroras that appeared across the night sky and produced temporary radiation belts around the Earth that lasted for weeks. The tests were designed to investigate an idea proposed by physicist Nicholas Christofilos. He believed that detonating nuclear weapons above the atmosphere would release high-energy electrons that could become trapped by the Earth’s magnetic field.According to educational material maintained by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, this cloud of charged particles could form a shell around the Earth, creating an artificial radiation barrier. Military planners hoped such a high-altitude radiation belt could damage the guidance electronics of incoming Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles or interfere with radar systems during a nuclear war.To carry out the tests, the US Navy...