|
These remarkable photographs came to our attention after we published several postcards from a new book on the atomic age in a recent weekend edition, including one that featured a colorized version the atomic bomb test of shot Charlie that you see here. Mr. Verdooner sent us these images after seeing the vintage postcards published in the WSJ newspaper. We were struck by the beauty of the images, and were delighted when he agreed to be interviewed about his experience shooting them. Sergeant Marcel Verdooner was 24 years old on April 22, 1952, when he witnessed an atomic bomb detonation reportedly 10 times more powerful than the one that hit Hiroshima. He was a member of the 301st Signal Photographic Company detachment of 21 photographers assigned to Yucca Flats, six of whom are still living today. Mr. Verdooner describes what he saw as shot Charlie was dropped, in his position about ten miles from ground zero: “The first photo here was taken after the initial fireball was burned out and the stem of the mushroom started to develop from the sand on surface of the desert. The colors in the fireball were indescribably beautiful. This image shows the shock wave traveling across the desert. After I took this photo I had to kneel down, turn my back to the shock wave and brace myself. The fireball was followed by the forming and rising of the mushroom cloud in the second photo. The vacuum created by the fireball sucked material inwards, which creates the mushroom shape.” Shot Charlie was the first public and televised atomic bomb test in the US.
|
