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that fired the live nuclear shot. It was restored in 2010 and is now displayed with prime movers replacing those that were lost in an accident when the cannon was retrieved from
Germany by the museum in 1964. After the initial test, it was mistakenly switched with a different cannon. The mistake was
445:
each. The cannons weighed 83.3 tons, were 84 feet long, 16.1 feet wide, and 12.2 feet tall. Operated by a crew of 5-7 artillerymen, the cannon fired 280mm caliber shells that weighed 600 pounds and had a range of 7-20 miles. The atomic yield of the shells could be anywhere from 15-20 kilotons. They
359:
turns on 28-foot (8.5 m) wide paved or packed roads. The artillery piece could be unlimbered in 12 minutes, then returned to traveling configuration in another 15 minutes. The gun was deployed by lowering it from the tractors onto levelled ground. The whole gun assembly was balanced on a ball
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were deployed overseas to Europe and Korea, and frequently shifted around to avoid being detected and targeted by opposing forces. Due to the size of the apparatus, their limited range, the development of nuclear shells compatible with existing artillery pieces (the
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340:, chief of the ballistics section of the ordnance department's research and development division. A three-year developmental effort followed. The project proceeded quickly enough to produce a demonstration model to participate in
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discovered 10 years later prompting a search for the original weapon. The search was concluded successfully in West
Germany 1964, following which the cannon was decontaminated and restored.
525:
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tactical nuclear missiles), the M65 was effectively obsolete soon after it was deployed. However, it remained a prestige weapon and was not retired until 1963. In that same year, the
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355:. Each of the tractors was rated at 375 horsepower (280 kW), and the somewhat awkward combination could achieve speeds of 35 miles per hour (56 km/h) and negotiate
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was tasked with creating a nuclear-capable artillery piece. Robert
Schwartz, the engineer who created the preliminary designs, essentially scaled up the
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and socket joint so that it could be swung around the footplate. The traverse was limited by a curved track placed under the rear of the gun.
905:
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418:, which was a recoilless smooth-bore gun firing the warhead mounted on the end of a spigot inserted in the barrel of the weapon.)
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warhead) at a range of 7 miles (11 km). This was the first and only nuclear shell to be fired from a cannon. (The
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T1 Gun, one of two produced as part of a separate design program which was abandoned in favor of the T131
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429:, testing of the M65 artillery on 5/25/1953. The footage at normal speed is about 2 and a half minutes.
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344:'s inaugural parade in January 1953. The gun was initially designated T131 and the carriage was T72.
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Atomic
America: How a Deadly Explosion and a Feared Admiral Changed the Course of Nuclear History
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The cannon was transported by two specially designed tractors in the same manner as railroad
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30:"Atomic Annie" redirects here. For the French businesswoman and nuclear power advocate, see
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Of the twenty M65s produced, at least seven survive on display. Most no longer have their
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953:; Burr, William (1 November 1999). "Appendix B: Deployments by Country, 1951-1977".
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336:.) The design was approved by the Pentagon, largely through the intervention of
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The W9 280mm nuclear artillery shell as equipped, and fired from, the M65.
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prototype of the M65. The weapon at the museum is actually a conventional
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On May 25, 1953, at 8:30 a.m., the atomic cannon was tested at the
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131:
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The M65 fired the W9 nuclear artillery shell, first tested during the
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Atomic Cannon program. Both the T1 and T131/M65 share T72 carriages.
257:
device. It was developed in the early 1950s, at the beginning of the
154:
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After the successful test, at least 20 cannons were manufactured at
289:
shot in 1953, yielding 15 kilotons, about the same strength as the
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given to a pair of German K5 guns which were employed against the
280:
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nuclear artillery shell came into service with the US Army.
253:
piece built by the United States and capable of firing a
526:
United States Army
Ordnance Training and Heritage Center
394:; it resulted in the successful detonation of a 15
669:
List of U.S. Army weapons by supply catalog designation
261:; and fielded between April 1955 and December 1962, in
1176:
Atomic Annie fired during NATO Exercise
Keystone, 1954
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462:), and the development of rocket- and missile-based
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as a point of departure for the carriage. (The name
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1168:is available for free viewing and download at the
1165:The 280 mm Gun at the Nevada Proving Ground (1953)
1060:"Historic Fort Sill Cannon to Receive Restoration"
857:
855:
853:
851:
596:has been erroneously identified as possessing a
536:National Museum of Nuclear Science & History
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381:Chairman-delegate of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
375:series of nuclear tests. The test—codenamed "
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1206:Military equipment introduced in the 1950s
532:, with the two large prime movers attached
36:
113:12 feet 2 inches (3.71 m)
1196:Cold War artillery of the United States
813:Pursglove, S. David (1 February 1963).
691:
615:
167:double recoil, ball and socket traverse
1046:"RIA Self-Guided Tour: 'Atomic Annie'"
821:. Davis Publications. pp. 50–54.
1142:"Informational Didactic for T1 Gun".
1072:from the original on 28 November 2016
313:(then the maximum in the arsenal) to
7:
1026:from the original on 3 February 2020
864:"M65 Atomic Cannon - "Atomic Annie""
815:"What Happened to the Atomic Cannon"
794:from the original on 7 December 2020
748:"M65 Atomic Cannon - Specifications"
206:2,500 feet per second (760 m/s)
1091:Crawley, Jeff (16 September 2010).
1014:Berliner III, Sam (13 April 2020).
214:approximately 20 miles (30 km)
389:United States Secretary of Defense
25:
956:Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
328:likely derives from the nickname
89:78,410 kg; 86.433 short tons
844:– via theatomiccannon.com.
650:
638:
618:
211:Effective firing range
47:
27:Cold War US heavy towed howitzer
645:View from the front prime mover
633:1958 deployment in Korea (film)
969:10.1080/00963402.1999.11460395
784:"280mm Atomic Annie Artillery"
709:"History of the Atomic Cannon"
1:
1020:Sam Berliner's Ordnance Pages
890:Tucker, Todd (3 March 2009).
317:and used the similarly sized
53:A preserved M65 atomic cannon
509:U.S. Army Artillery Museum,
136:280 millimeters (11 in)
416:Davy Crockett weapon system
1222:
1118:"Atomic Annie on the move"
1093:"Atomic Annie on the Move"
311:240 mm howitzer shell
29:
565:Watervliet Arsenal Museum
425:Full uncut detonation of
218:
125:
69:Place of origin
46:
493:An M65 atomic cannon at
334:Allied landings in Italy
73:United States of America
542:, with two prime movers
540:Albuquerque, New Mexico
517:. This is the original
495:Aberdeen Proving Ground
594:Newport News, Virginia
498:
430:
427:Upshot-Knothole Grable
379:"—was attended by the
353:extra-long fire trucks
302:
287:Upshot-Knothole Grable
193:360° (by moving float)
1068:. 14 September 2010.
560:Rock Island, Illinois
547:Junction City, Kansas
492:
424:
284:
63:Heavy towed artillery
1016:"Atomic Cannon Page"
819:Science and Mechanic
573:Watervliet, New York
530:Petersburg, Virginia
392:Charles Erwin Wilson
342:Dwight D. Eisenhower
232:W9 (nuclear warhead)
202:Muzzle velocity
105:10 feet (3.0 m)
1148:. 19 February 2019.
1145:Virginia War Museum
1124:. 16 September 2010
949:Norris, Robert S.;
790:. 5 February 2014.
590:Virginia War Museum
579:Yuma Proving Ground
556:Rock Island Arsenal
97:85 feet (26 m)
898:Simon and Schuster
869:GlobalSecurity.org
753:GlobalSecurity.org
675:2A3 Kondensator 2P
569:Watervliet Arsenal
558:, Memorial Field,
499:
439:Watertown Arsenals
431:
303:
147:Welin breech block
41:M65 atomic cannon
1191:Nuclear artillery
951:Arkin, William M.
628:
464:nuclear artillery
385:Arthur W. Radford
371:) as part of the
307:Picatinny Arsenal
241:M65 atomic cannon
237:
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16:(Redirected from
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1201:280 mm artillery
1170:Internet Archive
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1048:. 15 April 2019.
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485:Surviving units
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441:, at a cost of
410:test shot of a
408:Little Feller 1
373:Upshot–Knothole
322:K5 railroad gun
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243:, often called
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159:hydro-pneumatic
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87:172,865 lb
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32:Anne Lauvergeon
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1157:External links
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367:(specifically
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79:Specifications
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871:. 17 May 2019
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755:. 18 May 2019
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1126:. Retrieved
1122:www.army.mil
1121:
1112:
1100:. Retrieved
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1086:
1074:. Retrieved
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1054:
1040:
1028:. Retrieved
1019:
1009:
963:(6): 66–67.
960:
954:
944:
934:– via
892:
885:
873:. Retrieved
868:
838:. Retrieved
818:
808:
796:. Retrieved
787:
757:. Retrieved
752:
716:. Retrieved
712:
587:
519:Atomic Annie
518:
503:prime movers
500:
432:
362:
346:
329:
326:Atomic Annie
325:
304:
299:World War II
263:West Germany
246:Atomic Annie
245:
244:
240:
238:
18:Atomic Annie
1102:13 February
1076:13 February
1030:13 February
875:13 February
840:14 February
759:13 February
671:(SNL D-57)?
606:280 mm
602:240 mm
598:240 mm
472:Honest John
468:Little John
460:203 mm
452:155 mm
443:US$ 800,000
357:right-angle
330:Anzio Annie
315:280 mm
267:South Korea
190:7.5° (fine)
1185:Categories
1128:2023-04-29
916:2008013842
798:11 October
686:References
551:Fort Riley
435:Watervliet
383:, Admiral
291:Little Boy
1001:470268256
985:0096-3402
977:1938-3282
932:16752530M
924:218189183
827:0036-8202
511:Fort Sill
402:) shell (
398:(63
305:In 1949,
295:Hiroshima
251:artillery
249:, was an
173:Elevation
1097:army.mil
1070:Archived
1024:Archived
993:48034039
792:Archived
663:See also
515:Oklahoma
458:for the
454:and the
450:for the
259:Cold War
227:armament
183:Traverse
164:Carriage
1065:KSWO-TV
835:1765193
718:4 March
680:2B1 Oka
612:Gallery
414:used a
297:during
277:History
271:Okinawa
269:and on
255:nuclear
132:Caliber
999:
991:
983:
975:
930:
922:
914:
904:
833:
825:
377:Grable
319:German
155:Recoil
142:Breech
110:Height
94:Length
973:eISSN
479:155mm
102:Width
1104:2021
1078:2021
1032:2021
997:OCLC
989:LCCN
981:ISSN
920:OCLC
912:LCCN
902:ISBN
877:2021
842:2021
831:OCLC
823:ISSN
800:2008
761:2021
720:2019
588:The
470:and
437:and
387:and
239:The
225:Main
118:Crew
84:Mass
59:Type
965:doi
592:in
476:W48
456:W33
448:W48
412:W54
177:55°
121:5–7
1187::
1120:.
1095:.
1062:.
1022:.
1018:.
995:.
987:.
979:.
971:.
961:55
959:.
928:OL
926:.
918:.
910:.
900:.
896:.
867:.
850:^
829:.
817:.
786:.
769:^
751:.
728:^
711:.
694:^
581:,
571:,
567:,
538:,
528:,
513:,
505:.
404:W9
400:TJ
396:kt
273:.
265:,
1172:.
1131:.
1106:.
1080:.
1034:.
1003:.
967::
938:.
879:.
802:.
763:.
722:.
497:.
301:.
149:-
34:.
20:)
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
