Trinity


As a member of the 1995 IPMS National Convention I went on the tour of the site of the first manmade atomic explosion: Trinity in central New Mexico. The tour coincided almost to the day with the fiftieth anniversary of that fateful date: July 16, 1945. But since our tour was a week before the actual anniversary, we didn't have to deal with mobs of people: there were about a hundred or so of us modelers... along with a Japanese TV crew. I don't think they were getting the reactions they wanted...

One of my obsessions is the history of the atomic bomb and subsequent nuclear policy. It may be a somewhat bizarre and morbid fascination, but I'm a child of the Cold War: I used to have nightmares about nuclear holocausts. The more I read about the nuclear politics of the late 1940's through the late 1980's, the more amazed I am that we managed to survive without triggering Armageddon... perhaps there's hope for humanity yet. But I digress...

The day started early as we boarded the busses at the convention center. We were taken to the northern edge of the White Sands Missile Range where the Trinity Site is located. The map below shows where everything is and the DOE brochure we were given tells the story of what happened fifty years ago, so I won't get into that... I'll just give a few of my impressions with the photographs. One more thought: if you're in the area, be sure to stop at the Owl Cafe in San Antonio and have a green chile cheeseburger. You might regret it later, but trust me, it's worth it.

Trinity site map


The Photographs

Beware of snakes Rear of house Corral and barn Bomb assembly room
Bomb assembly room NE corner of house SE corner of house Windmill tower
N to ENE panorama
ENE to ESE panorama
ESE to WSW panorama
Ken and Jumbo Entrance sign Trinitite Ken and monument
The Original Ground Zero The crater Crater shelter Sheltered crater




Ninfinger self portrait
Sven Knudson, IPMS#32490
sven@ninfinger.org