The footage of huge blast effect at rainforest by various cameras

Operation Blowdown was a military operation that took place on 18 July 1963. Conducted in northern Queensland, Australia by a joint Australian-American-British team, it was designed to simulate the effects of a nuclear weapon on tropical rainforest, using 50 tons of conventional explosive (TNT). A device containing 50 tons of TNT was detonated to partially simulate a ten kiloton air burst in the Iron Range jungle of the Cape York Peninsula. The explosives were sourced from obsolete artillery shells and placed in a tower 42 metres (138 ft) above ground level and 21 metres (69 ft) the rainforest canopy. After the explosion, troops were moved through the area (which was now covered in up to a metre of leaf litter), to test their ability to transit across the debris. In addition, obsolete vehicles and equipment left near the centre of the explosion were destroyed. The explosion was intended by the Robert Menzies government to test and examine the feasibility of air burst nuclear weapons for clearing forests and the use of mangled forests to slow troop movement in South East Asia, primarily Indonesia and Malaysia in the escalation of the time against Sukarno and the Konfrontasi Malayan Emergency. There was also a view to use such techniques in the later Myanmar conflict and Vietnam War, which were simmering at the time.

[@shrunkensimon]

And we wonder why aliens won't land

[@SuperKasper333]

No kidding. Good comment!

[@The_Fat_Controller.]

They probably went through the same phase on their home planet.

[@bananajoe3669]

Because of all the trees?

[@Thwarptide]

Why? They don’t need to.

[@12time12]

@@bananajoe3669too many scrotum mites blasted into the atmosphere, now you’ll get a pandemic level case just by visiting that general area. Say goodbye to your family jewels, aliens ain’t about all that.

[@i_cri_evertim]

RIP wildlife in that area

[@mikenewtonninja9379]

I'm sure they either captured all the anmals in the blast radius or scared them off first - they'd never set off a nuke with all monkeys and lizards and stuff milling around!

[@AjF392]

😒awhuh?

[@michaelg8465]

@@mikenewtonninja9379 Monkeys? Or are you generalizing?

[@T_81535]

​@@mikenewtonninja9379🤣

[@jameswilkes451]

@@mikenewtonninja9379 I doubt that!

[@Celeon999A]

There are several good reasons why they chose to simulate a nuclear detonation instead of just using a low kiloton real nuke. One of them is that a real nuke would have set countless squaremiles of rainforest on fire by the thermal radiaton of its ignition. Forest fires which would have been impossible to contain and would have caused devastation far beyond the blast area.

[@SubvertTheState]

Yeah, just the black body radiation (at least I think that's right) emitted by the ball of plasma, vaporizes the paint on cars hundreds of yards away.

[@Smallyield]

I remember watching a show in the 90s, "Bushtucker man" showing survival techniques for the Australian bush. He went through where this test was done and everything was just left in place. Could still see the twisted remains of the tower.

[@BuggSmasher]

Wasn't Russell Coight was it???? He so "accident-prone" he would have stumbled upon live rounds and caused it to re-detonate again !! kzbin.info/aero/PLDVYi7dp_ii0tppQuXoHFG2Azg8f3HgoP

[@Smallyield]

@@BuggSmasher it was Les Hiddins

[@keithallver2450]

They should call it the Autumn bomb. It's really good at making trees drop their leaves.

[@stan7816]

This bomb was developed during the Cold War between man and tree. It performed exactly as intended, thankfully we were never forced to drop it.

[@garyobrian3597]

I bet dutch survived that blast from the predator 😂

[@rvrffdd6416]

No animals were harmed on the making off this film... 🤫

[@gabrielc6252]

they asked them kindly to leave

[@xxzusxx]

Never seen this footage before great job 👍

[@bryanguzik]

Whatever one's current feeling on the topic, I always look at the testing-era as one of little kids growing into big kids but never needing to give-up playing with their "toys"?!

[@massey4business]

98% of leaves just gone! That sound, like a car driving away is so ominous.

[@badgercdlyons]

US Military: We have conclusively proven that a blast of this size is more than capable of knocking leaves off of nearby trees.

[@Mastermindyoung14]

Us: how bad will it be if we shoot ourselves in the foot? Also us: ouch bad foot hurt

[@AlcharynMusic]

Incredible footage, especially the sound seems to be original, unlike 90% of other test footage

[@Gremriel]

The sound is not original. There's quite the distance between the explosion and the camera, so it would take a little bit before the shockwave reaches the camera, not instant. Unless they had a mic at ground zero.

[@mapesdhs597]

@@Gremriel Or if someone realigned the audio so it synced up and thus sounded more "correct" to a casual viewer? Is there some other way one could tell whether the audio makes any sense?

[@Gremriel]

@@mapesdhs597If you're detonating 50 tons of TNT, you're going to make sure to be at quite a distance away from it. While the initial shockwave is supersonic, it loses energy fast, so in general, you will be using the speed of sound in air (which is about 330m/s). So, let's say you're a kilometer away from ground zero, the sound of the detonation will reach you in about 3 seconds. For example, search for a video about the Pepcon disaster in 1988. There is quite a bit of time between the explosion and when the shockwave reaches the camera.

[@AlcharynMusic]

@@Gremriel The first one was clearly edited, but the explosions after that are pretty near ground zero and are at least synched quite accurately. You can even hear some fragments and leaves, so it does sound genuine. Edit: Remember this is not a nuclear detonation, but 50t of TNT.

[@ThatsNotFunnyThatsSick]

The leaves and small branches of the trees blowing in the wind sounded exactly like hurricane Irma passing over Central Florida. All the Oak trees made a friggin mess.

[@maxkonig559]

It's amazing to see how much suction it creates after the explosion as you can see the leaves and other debris going back to the explosion site and that is a low yield nuke.

[@filonin2]

It wasn't a nuke at all.

[@Asymmetrical-Saggin]

Clearly you didn't read the description.

[@Motorkid98]

Imagine all the pollen released. People with allergies would be dying 😂

[@michaelwicks7680]

It seems trees are very resilient 😅

[@bluegold21]

A hurricane would bring them down which goes to show how much power is within storms.

[@borntoclimb7116]

This was a test with 50 tons of conventional explosives on a tower.

[@benjaminfraeyman]

Wow 😲 one of the most mind boggling videos ive seen here so far 😊

[@ruperterskin2117]

Cool. Thanks for sharing.

[@user-cu9vf8um1e]

Nice video! Do more👍

[@geoffrey6000]

That sound it makes about 2 seconds after the blast is so eerie.

[@tom-vf1xv]

i think the sound is edited for dramatic effect

[@TheBHAWK89]

Instantly cleared the forest🤯🤯🤯

[@longlakeshore]

Awesome! Any pics/vid of the epicenter after?

[@garysmith9818]

All that and it's just chemical explosives, I'd hate to think what an actual nuke would do. Thanks for posting ATC!

[@Republic9323]

It depends on the yield of the nuke. If it were a nuke of the same yield (50 tons), then not much would differ. Even the thermal pulse from such a small nuclear detonation would be insignificant enough in terms of how long it would last. We’re talking about a thermal pulse lasting about 100 milliseconds. It would be similar to a camera's flash. Very bright, but over almost as soon as it began. The prompt radiation output (gamma and neutrons) is another story entirely. The lethal blast of radiation is what would kill you if the physical effects of the blast hadn’t.

[@Jesse31597]

Proof cameraman always lives

[@TroyRubert]

That's one of the most fantastic videos I've seen. Do you know of any more effects on environment tests like this?

[@Thwarptide]

Who said it was a nuke? Does it look like a tactical nuke detonation to you? Even tactical nukes have very bright light.

[@TroyRubert]

@@Thwarptide Because it wasn't a nuke, duh literally says so in the description 🤦‍♂️

[@eliaas9689]

Impecable tu trabajo, cada día me sorprendo mas con tu contenido. Es de admirar.

[@nicholasmaude6906]

The test was a real blast.

[@Eye_see_all83]

What kind of cameras did they use? Those cameras are tough as nails

[@LawatheMEid]

Any footage for examining the area surrounding the explosion?

[@godfreecharlie]

Did you see that? Dutch and Dillon along with a young female were running from something it appeared but then the explosion.That was a pretty large one considering a hand grenade would suffice for 3 people. Sheesh

[@seanbaskett5506]

Imagine all the fun sh*t they did that we *don't* know about

[@OllyO-gt8pg]

good way to collect leaves.

[@christhesmith]

Raking up them leaves musta taken ages.

[@evsstudiorecords357]

The audio quality is very high for a 1963 film camera. Is it the original audio?

[@davemanning6424]

Test by the australian army in 1963 called operation blowdown , about 50 tons of explosive on a platform in the trees

[@That-Mark-Guy]

I get about the same effect when I use my new Husqvarna backpack blower...

[@lightdark4161]

Even in a trench, I wouldn't survive! Wow!

[@abraao44292]

0:04 coloque em camera lenta no youtube ja tem essa opição é só mecher nas configuraçoes e vai apertando o pause no video e legal na hora da esplosão

[@Saltfly]

In a couple of these shots you can see impacts before the blast wave gets there. Are those projectiles emitting from the blast?

[@matthewitt2276]

Finally, a way to get rid of Mistletoe.

[@sincerewyd2285]

That groaning noise at the end is creepy.

[@TecraX2]

RIP Wildlife...

[@labbeaj]

1:06 Trees still standing! Only the leaves went flying... Why?

[@d.cypher2920]

Look folks, unless you're a 300 foot mahogany tree, you're not going to survive that. That tree took it on the chin like a real OG. 😮

[@LordFred69]

thats one way to clear the land

[@craigmiller3568]

Man has truly gone berserk🤡

[@julietaloreto9476]

Yield : 59 tons

[@muddrudder2656]

Sir, the spider is confirmed killed

[@okeyokey578]

imagine what destruction soviets 50 megaton couuld do .. thats insane

[@twobits7310]

They leave nothing, destroyed everything!

[@andypottschmidt696]

That's an easy way to get ripe persimmons out of the tree. Sure beats climbing the tree and shaking the branches.

[@chrome2infinity938]

My back yard on 4th of July

[@dirleitavares822]

Crime against nature does not happen today, I hope that humanity responds to humanity no matter what the cost.

[@terratec1001]

Isn't that what they called "the daisy cutter"...?

[@alphared4655]

Indeed it is.

[@MyCareerRelatedVideos-xv4du]

This not Atom Bomb this was a training by other highest grade explosives , explosion arts. I made this types of explosion by my task was how to break all trees from the middle. That was a given project to me. I thought so many was qualified for the training. Later I found no one selected and all project I was given by a colonel. Then everytime different different task they gave to destruct trees. Sometimes from middle, from another point branches, all trees must be uprooted, make explosion so that looks like desert etch. Thus I successfully did all. Then qualified candidates were observing and helping me. After my project completion all started to do same same in new areas of jungle. Thus all project they tried to do and after five project they left rest time was over of training. That colonel took us in rainforest as an African military leader as Amazon guard etch. Lastly he talked with me in USA and he is a USA citizen that's I couldn't understand also an Army officer of USA. After talking whole day night generals came and I was promoted to next rank. I was given uniform and I was given new rank. Possibly...

[@juan_matus]

the farmers of colombia and bolivia could use this technic ...

[@jasontipton8430]

what happened to that artillery piece did it vaporize it sparked and dissappeared

[@woodchipgardens9084]

138 ft tower, 100,000 pounds is not something your going to transport in One piece.

[@doric_historic]

The simulated effects of a hot curry released by a human being were felt throughout the rainforest...

[@bluegold21]

00:19 +/- A part of the bomb casing must have hit the artillery because wood is not going to cause that sort of spark.

[@belowfray5251]

Environmentally friendly

[@billyhighfill]

Ya. Screw those trees.

[@TECHNOCHAD]

STRANGE!!... Very Strange??

[@matthewrussell4339]

How the F. Did them cameras survive ?

[@matteomontu3855]

really painful to watch

[@splinterdavies1644]

Why dosen't the camera shake?

[@ThatGuy-sd3zl]

End result report: We have thusly confirmed that a high-power explosive as used in our test can indeed remove leaves and tree branches. -Americans probably.

[@Badgerlust]

At 2:22 it sounds like Goku going super Saiyan

[@a.g.somsen3419]

Humanity has lost its mind.

[@DigitalVovoghure]

Shock wave will kill almost all trees in that area.

[@ihavethedocuments2580]

This is why God did not want man to eat from the tree of knowledge before it was time ...this right here

[@filonin2]

The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Not just knowledge. Adam and Eve literally lacked the ability to tell right from wrong before eating of the fruit and so it what actually makes humans, human. Without eating the fruit we'd still be dumb animals, according to the myth.

[@44-SWAGNUM-MAGA-X]

Thought it was gonnna be footstfeol cambodia

[@Akaneblaze1345]

Other tree kuns to blown up Tree- kun: Tatakai!!!!! >> Blown up Tree-kun: Shinpaishinaidekudasai, watashi wa kore o te ni iremashita 🌳💪

[@TheJackfrost88]

omg such POWER ; someone went super sayian i guess

[@craigmiller3568]

Behold, I come quickly

[@michaelg8465]

Yep. Australia has the best wood.

[@dannyverhamme7970]

This is evil...

[@Akaneblaze1345]

0:04 😂

[@Reality47895]

The 50Tons

[@juanantonioalbacetecalero6538]

It seems not to be a nuclear/atom bomb. No thermal pulse at all at the beginning. Anyone knows where the test was made and what device was used here?

[@Republic9323]

Operation Blowdown. Conducted at the Iron Range Test Site in Queensland, Australia, using 50 tons of high explosives detonated on top of a 136-foot steel tower. They wanted to simulate the effects of a nuclear detonation in a dense jungle environment. “Although never officially stated, there is speculation that the test was intended to determine the feasibility of using nuclear weapons in clearing the jungles of Vietnam at a time of Australia's increasing involvement in the Vietnam War starting in 1962.”

[@juanantonioalbacetecalero6538]

Ouhh, thanks!! Really interesting. I had no idea about that. Never heard about nuclear weapons in rainforests. Thanks again!!@@Republic9323

[@julietaloreto9476]

The device or design was called a "daisy cutter" Daisy cutters usually have 13 tons of TNT but this particular explosion had a yield of 60 tons.

[@yzdatabase4175]

thats not how sound works

[@deebeez4000]

Lighting a cigarette while taking a dump

[@wendycampion4717]

Why?????

[@MrEnajiza]

POOR DROP BEARS !!

[@SuperKasper333]

Mutations anyone?I used to give lectures on Chernobyl-things nuclear- The mutation and adaptation of flora and fauna in that region. Also, underwater detonations- tectonic destabilization and marine life mutations- those ocean detonations became the foundation for many Sci fi movies in that time. Yikes

[@filonin2]

Mutations from what? This wasn't a nuke.

[@Republic9323]

This was a conventional explosion. Also, only the United States and Soviet Union conducted underwater tests. About 8 in total between both nations. That’s it.

[@d.cypher2920]

Yes, those mutation are very real... Over 3,200 above ground nuclear and thermonuclear weapons were tested above ground in our atmosphere. Those mutations are called cancer today. They like to blame everything from industrial food, to genetics, yet I strongly believe that it is a result of the testing, and the nuclear materials industry in general. 😎🇺🇸

[@d.cypher2920]

​@filonin2 everyone knows that

[@kokobedima]

Whats the point of filming a tree?

[@CreativeWarrior-]

MulchMaster

[@bananajoe3669]

This looks not environmental friendly!

[@tuffgonggbUNCTION]

Werner von Braun

[@dfpytwa]

Did they ever nuke the whales?

[@emtee40]

With Tnt, its Done Dirt Cheap. 🤔😉

[@thomasanglin1751]

Obviously not the same power as the Hiroshima bomb

[@stelladoore9137]

Its lucky were the smartest species on earth....

[@cor2250]

Thats humans do Destroys are beautiful nature

[@Travis_Hackney]

Goddamn That was great, the sounds and music, wow!!

[@mozammelhaque9489]

Jy

[@davidmayhew8083]

Why?

[@fernandodarosaquagliadaros2816]

😅😅😊😊kkkk😂😂😂❤❤❤

[@somedudewithgrassgrowingou4177]

Hiw slow that shockwave looks to be moving should tell you hiw big that cloud is