Nuclear — fission · China · 1964
596
Test 596 (first Chinese test)
The first Chinese nuclear test, carried out with enriched uranium produced in China.
See 596 in the 3D simulator- Yield
- 22 ktDocumented
- Energy
- 92 TJ
- Mass
- 1.6 tDocumented
- Type
- First Chinese test (uranium, implosion)
- Period
- Cold War
- Status
- Single test
596 releases about 1.5 times the energy of Little Boy (Hiroshima, 1945).
Key points
- The name “596” reportedly refers to June 1959 (year 59, month 6), when Soviet nuclear assistance ended.
History
China became the fifth nuclear power. Less than three years later, it tested its first thermonuclear weapon.
- 1955 Official launch of the program.
- 16 October 1964 Test 596 at Lop Nur.
- 17 June 1967 First thermonuclear test (Test No. 6).
How does it work?
A fission weapon releases energy by splitting heavy nuclei (uranium-235 or plutonium-239). Each fission releases about 200 MeV and a few neutrons.
If these neutrons cause further fissions, a chain reaction runs away in less than a millionth of a second.
The energy heats matter to tens of millions of degrees: fireball, thermal radiation and shock wave.
General principle of implosion: conventional explosives strongly compress the fissile material, which becomes “supercritical” and sustains the chain reaction.
Deliberately general explanations: the application provides no design or manufacturing information.
Frequently asked questions
How powerful is 596?
596 has an estimated yield of 22 kt of TNT equivalent, about 92 TJ of energy.
What is the history of 596?
Single test, on 16 October 1964, at Lop Nur (Xinjiang). China became the fifth nuclear power. Less than three years later, it tested its first thermonuclear weapon.
What does the 596 explosion look like?
The Bomb Simulator shows the fireball, shock wave and cloud of 596 at real scale, over Paris, London or New York, with the sources and reliability of each value.
Sources
- Project 596 — Wikipedia (overview, to be cross-checked)
Other weapons
- Trinity — 25 kt
- Little Boy — 15 kt
- Fat Man — 21 kt
- RDS-1 — 22 kt
- Hurricane — 25 kt
- RDS-6s — 400 kt
- Gerboise Bleue — 70 kt
- Davy Crockett — 20 t
- Ivy Mike — 10.4 Mt
- Castle Bravo — 15 Mt
- RDS-37 — 1.6 Mt
- Mk 17 — 15 Mt
This application is an educational tool. The animations and effect zones are simplified representations meant to illustrate orders of magnitude. They are neither a prediction of the effects of a real weapon nor a military planning tool.