Nuclear weapons tests in Australia

The United Kingdom conducted 12 major nuclear weapons tests in Australia between 1952 and 1957. These explosions occurred at the Monte Bello Islands, Emu Field and Maralinga.

At least two books have been written about nuclear weapons testing in Australia. These include Britain, Australia and the Bomb and Maralinga: Australia's Nuclear Waste Cover-up.

Sites
The British conducted testing at Malden Island and Christmas Island between 1957 and 1958. These were airbursts mostly occurring over water or suspended a few hundred metres above the ground by balloon.

At the other three sites, testing was carried out between 1952 and 1957 and was mostly done at the surface. A few hundred smaller scale tests were conducted at both Emu Creek and Maralinga between 1953 and 1963.

Maralinga
A testing site at Maralinga was established in 1955, close to a siding along the Trans-Australian Railway. Because supplies could be brought to the site via rail, it was preferred over Emu Creek. A total of seven major tests were conducted at Maralinga. Both the Federal government and Australian newspapers at the time were very supportive of the tests. In 1952, the Liberal Government passed legislation, the Defence (Special Undertakings) Act 1952, which allowed the British Government access to remote parts of Australia to undertake atmospheric nuclear weapons tests. The general public were largely unaware of the risks from the testing program, stemming from official secrecy about the testing program and the remote locations of the test sites.

Before the tests could begin the Maralinga Tjarutja, the traditional Aboriginal owners of the land, had to be removed.

An air base at nearby Woomera, which had been used for rocket testing, was initially used as a base from which planes were flown for testing of the bomb clouds.

Opposition
Opposition to the tests grew throughout the 1950s, a poll in 1957 found that almost half the population were against them.