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Bikini
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In June 1988 the SRC was approached by representatives of the Department of Energy and the Bikini Council regarding conduct of a sunken ship survey at Bikini Atoll. In July-August 1989 and April-May 1990 the SRC team traveled to Kwajalein and Bikini Atolls to document ships sunk during the Operation Crossroads atomic bomb tests. The ships lying at the bottom of Bikini and Kwajalein Lagoons are the remains of a fascinating event in American history; one with international dimensions, including implications for the restructuring of post-World War II geopolitical alliances.
The notion that these ships might be considered as the focus for a marine park, which is the specific forte of the SRC, only fueled the teams interest and commitment. Efforts to evaluate the ships as historical, archeological, and recreational resources for disposition by the Bikinian people began in August 1989 and resulted in formal recommendations in the form of a report in March 1991. Although the ghost fleets of Truk Lagoon are related to WWII, nowhere in the world is there such a collection of capital warships, including a largely intact aircraft carrier, USS Saratoga, and Nagato, flagship of the Japanese Navy at the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor. |
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| Through chance or intent, a collection of warships that would have equaled in size the fourth largest navy in the world, including vessels of symbolic importance to the history of WWII, were included in the test array. They now reside at the bottom of the lagoon within a few hundred yards of each other comprising an incomparable diving experience.
- April-May 1990 Underwater archeological documentation of sunken ships in Bikini Atoll Lagoon, Phase II. In partnership with DOE and ABC television. Principal InvestigatorDaniel Lenihan.
- August 1989 Underwater archeological documentation of sunken ships in Bikini Atoll Lagoon, Phase I. In partnership with US Navy, DOE and ABC television. Principal InvestigatorDaniel Lenihan
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References:
- Delgado, James P., Daniel J. Lenihan and Larry Murphy, 1991, The Archaeology of the Atomic Bomb: A Submerged Cultural Resources Assessment of the Sunken Fleet of Operation Crossroads at Bikini and Kwajalein Atoll Lagoons, Republic of the Marshall Islands. Submerged Resources Center Professional Report No. 11. National Park Service, Santa Fe, NM.
- Lenihan, Daniel, 2002, Chapter 17 in Submerged: Adventures of Americas Most Elite Underwater Archeology Team. Newmarket Press, NY. Distributed by Best Publishing.
- Delgado, J.P., 1996, Ghost Fleet: The Sunken Ships of Bikini Atoll, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu.
- Lenihan, Daniel J., 1993, Bikini Beneath the Waves in American History Illustrated, 28, 3, 60-67.
- Eliot, John L., 1992, In Bikini Lagoon Life Thrives in a Nuclear Graveyard in National Geographic Magazine, June 1992.
- Delgado, James P., 1990, Documenting the Sunken Remains of USS Saratoga in United States Naval Institute Proceedings, 116, 10, 45-50.
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Related Links
Bikini Atoll
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