Ships at the Bikini Atoll
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See a small U.S. Park Service sketch of the Nagato as she rests on Bikini Atoll's lagoon.
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USS Arkansas BB-33 A 29,000 ton American battleship that survived two world wars had a fuel capacity of 37,779 barrels of fuel oil, 119 barrels of diesel oil, and 4,000 gallons of gasoline. The Arkansas took part in the Presidential Naval Review in the Hudson River, October 14, 1912 and then carried President William H. Taft to the Panama Canal Zone for an inspection of the unfinished canal. On April 22, 1914, she assisted in the occupation of Veracruz, Mexico. In December of 1918 she formed part of the escort carrying President Woodrow Wilson to France. In World War II, the Arkansas escorted convoys across the Atlantic. She remained in European waters for the invasion of Normandy where she performed yeoman service at Omaha Beach, the bombardment of Cherbourg and the invasion of southern France. She then moved to the Pacific to participate in action at Iwo Jima and Okinawa. The Arkansas, at rest almost completely upside down in Bikini's lagoon in 170 feet of water, received four battle stars for her service in World War II and was sunk by BAKER. 562 feet long. (1 buoy) |
USS Carlisle AA-69 A merchant craft named after a county in Kentucky, she had fuel capacity of 9,695 barrels of fuel oil and 375 barrels of diesel oil. She made three voyages to the west coast from Hawaii and Japan and shorter passages among South Pacific islands. She sits upright on the bottom and is guarded by a magnificent school of skip jacks; and there is almost always a shark siting on this ship. The ABLE blast split her open so she makes for a sensational penetration dive. Fuel and ammunition loads during test ABLE were 95% of capacity. The Carlisle was sunk by the ABLE blast. 426 feet long. (1 buoy). |
USS Lamson DD-367 The American destroyer Lamson received five battle stars for service during World War II. She was used to search for Amelia Earhart in 1937 in the Marshall and Gilbert Islands. She was deployed from Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, in the unsuccessful search for the Japanese Task Force that bombed Pearl Harbor and later served throughout the Pacific until the end of the war. Her fuel capacity was 3,600 barrels, her diesel oil capacity was 110 barrels, and she was at 50% capacity for both fuels and ordnance when she was sunk by ABLE. Her hull provides a great example of the power of a nuclear explosion as it is horribly twisted and damaged. She is a Bikini divemaster favorite. 341 feet long. (1 buoy). See more technical information about the USS Lamson. |
USS Apogon SS-308 An American submarine with normal fuel capacity of 54,000 gallons, and an emergency load of 116,000 gallons. She made eight war patrols sinking three Japanese vessels totaling 7,575 tons. Her first patrol was out of Pearl Harbor in November of 1943. She later patrolled from Majuro to Midway and was part of Operation Galvanic during the invasions of Tarawa and the Gilbert Islands. Working off Formosa, she ran in a wolf-pack known as the "Mickey Finns" that sunk 41,000 tons worth of Japanese vessels toward the end of the war. She received five battle stars and was sunk by BAKER. She now appears perfectly upright as if ready to drive away on the bottom of Bikini's lagoon. Eric Hanauer of Discover Diving commented, "The shadowy silhouette of Apogon's conning tower, completely enveloped by glassy sweepers, is one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen underwater." 312 feet long. (1 buoy) See more technical information about the USS Apogon. |
USS Anderson DD-411 An American destroyer that received ten battle stars during World War II. She served as a carrier screen in the Coral Sea, Midway, the Solomons, Guadalcanal, and Tarawa. Always on the frontlines, she was with the Lexington CV-2 and the Yorktown CV-5 aircraft carriers when they were sunk in battle by the Japanese. She was also with the USS Wasp and the USS Hornet when they were sunk in WWII. In 1943, in Wotje Atoll in the Marshall Islands, she got hit with a 155mm shell that killed the captain and five officers and wounded another 18 men. She carried 2929 barrels of fuel oil and 168 barrels of diesel oil and was at 95% of capacity of both fuel and ordnance when she was sunk by ABLE and is now at rest on her side in Bikini's lagoon. 348 feet long. (1 buoy) |
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HIJMS Sakawa The Sakawa, a Japanese ship, was built in Sasebo Naval Dockyard, and launched on April 9, 1944. She was the only vessel of its class to survive the war. Nominal armament 6 x6"/50 (interestingly, these guns were refitted secondary weapons from earlier ships, like the Kongo-class battleships), 4 x 80mm AA, approx. 61 x 25mm AA, 8 x 24" torpedo tubes, 16 depth charges, 1 catapult, and 2 floatplanes. Length 563 feet at the waterline, 571 feet overall, 49' 10" beam, 18' 5" draught. She had 4 shaft geared turbines from 6 Kampon boilers for 100,000 shp and 35 knots and carried 1,405 tons fuel oil for a 6,300 nautical mile radius at 18 knots. The Sakawa was surrendered to the U.S. at Maizuru in August of 1945, then used for repatriation duties until taken to Bikini where she was sunk by ABLE with an unknown fuel load and apparently no ordnance. 532 feet long as she rests in Bikini's lagoon in an upright position. (1 buoy)
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Ships
Not Buoyed at the Bottom of Bikini Lagoon 4
- LCT-414 The aforementioned "L" vessels were landing craft with little known history. Some were sunk in the lagoon, some were towed to sea and sunk after the tests, and at least one was "obliterated." |