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Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site

Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site

In the wake of World War II, in a move closely related to the beginnings of the Cold War, the United States of America decided to resume nuclear testing in the Pacific Ocean, on Bikini Atoll in the Marshall archipelago. After the displacement of the local inhabitants, 67 nuclear tests were carried out from 1946 to 1958, including the explosion of the first H-bomb (1952). Bikini Atoll has conserved direct tangible evidence that is highly significant in conveying the power of the nuclear tests, i.e. the sunken ships sent to the bottom of the lagoon by the tests in 1946 and the gigantic Bravo crater. Equivalent to 7,000 times the force of the Hiroshima bomb, the tests had major consequences on the geology and natural environment of Bikini Atoll and on the health of those who were exposed to radiation. Through its history, the atoll symbolises the dawn of the nuclear age, despite its paradoxical image of peace and of earthly paradise. This is the first site from the Marshall Islands to be inscribed on the World Heritage List.

Site d’essais nucléaires de l’atoll de Bikini

Au lendemain de la Seconde guerre mondiale, en étroite relation avec les débuts de la guerre froide, les Etats-Unis décidèrent de reprendre leurs essais nucléaires dans l'océan Pacifique sur l'atoll de Bikini dans l'archipel des Marshall. Une fois les habitants déplacés, 67 essais nucléaires furent réalisés entre 1946 et 1958, dont celui de la première bombe H (1952). La flotte coulée dans le lagon par les essais de 1946 ou le gigantesque cratère Bravo constituent des témoignages directs des essais nucléaires. D'une puissance totale 7000 fois supérieure à celle d'Hiroshima, ils eurent des conséquences importantes sur la géologie de Bikini, son environnement naturel et la santé des populations irradiées. Par son histoire, l'atoll symbolise l'entrée dans l'âge nucléaire malgré une image paradoxale de paix et de paradis terrestre. Il s'agit du premier site des Iles Marshall à être inscrit sur la Liste du patrimoine mondial.

أتول بيكيني، موقع تجارب نووية

بعد انتهاء الحرب العالمية الثانية، وفي ظروف الحرب الباردة، قررت الولايات المتحدة استئناف تجاربها النووية في المحيط الهادي على أتول بيكيني في مجموعة جزر مارشال. وبعد أن تم إجلاء سكان هذه المنطقة، أُطلِقت 67 قذيفة نووية بين عامي 1946 و1958، من بينها أول قنبلة هيدروجينية (1952). ويمثل الأسطول الذي غرق في البحيرة الشاطئية جرّاء التجارب التي جرت في عام 1946والحفرة الضخمة التي نجمت عن تفجير قنبلة "برافو" شواهد مباشرة على إطلاق قذائف نووية. وأفضت هذه القذائف، التي بلغت قوتها أكثر من 7000 أمثال قوة قنبلة هيروشيما، إلى تأثيرات خطيرة على جيولوجية بيكيني، وعلى بيئتها الطبيعية وصحة سكانها الذين تعرضوا للإشعاع. ومن خلال تاريخها، ترمز مجموعة جزر بيكيني، بشكل متناقض، إلى الدخول في العصر النووي، رغم أنها تُعتبر ملاذاً للسلام والنعيم.

source: UNESCO/ERI

比基尼环礁

第二次世界大战后,历史进入了以冷战为标志的新一页。在此背景下,美国决定在位于太平洋马绍尔群岛的比基尼环礁恢复核试验。他们疏散了居民,并在1946 年至1958年间,在此进行了67次核武器爆炸试验,其中还包括第一枚氢弹(1952年)的爆炸。在泻湖中还沉睡着1946年试验时被击沉的舰队,环礁中还能看到巨大的“布拉沃”弹坑,它们都是核武器爆炸最直接的证据。这里爆炸的总当量达到了广岛原子弹爆炸当量的7000倍,对比基尼环礁的地质、自然环境和遭辐射人群的健康造成严重的影响。出于这一历史原因,比基尼环礁成为原子时代到来的象征,尽管环礁的和平美丽如天堂般的风景与这一象征大相径庭。这是马绍尔群岛首个被列入《世界遗产名录》的遗址。

source: UNESCO/ERI

Атолл Бикини

Вскоре после завершения Второй мировой войны, в обстановке "холодной войны" США решили возобновить ядерные испытания в Тихом океане на атолле Бикини, Маршалловы острова. Выселив местных жителей, США провели здесь в период 1946-1958 г.г. 67 ядерных взрывов, включая испытание первой водородной бомбы (1952). Суда, затопленные в лагуне в ходе испытаний 1946 года, и гигантский кратер Браво являются прямыми свидетельствами произведенных ядерных испытаний. Превышая в 7000 раз мощность бомбы, взорванной в Хиросиме, они оказали глубокое воздействие на геологию Бикини, его окружающую природную среду и здоровье подвергшихся радиационному излучению. Атолл стал выражением исторического парадокса – райский уголок Земли, превращенный в устрашающий символ вступления в ядерный век. Это – первый объект Маршалловых островов, включенный в Спиcок Мирового наследия.

source: UNESCO/ERI

Atolón de Bikini

Inmediatamente después del final de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, en el contexto internacional de la Guerra Fría, los Estados Unidos decidieron reanudar las pruebas de armas nucleares en el atolón de Bikini, situado en el archipiélago de las Marshall. Una vez evacuados sus habitantes, se llevaron a cabo 67 explosiones nucleares en el periodo 1946-1958, entre las que destacó la de la primera bomba H (1952). Los buques hundidos en la laguna del atolón durante las pruebas efectuadas en 1946 y el gigantesco cráter originado por la mayor de todas ellas –la operación Castle Bravo– son testigos de las explosiones nucleares. Dotadas de una potencia siete mil veces mayor que la de la bomba lanzada sobre Hiroshima, esas explosiones tuvieron hondas repercusiones en la geología y el medio ambiente de Bikini, así como en la salud de las poblaciones sujetas a las radiaciones atómicas. Pese a su imagen de pacífico paraíso terrenal, el atolón de Bikini es paradójicamente el símbolo de la era de las armas atómicas.

source: UNESCO/ERI

ビキニ環礁核実験場
マーシャル諸島共和国初の世界遺産。第2次世界大戦後にはじまった冷戦に伴い、アメリカ合衆国は、太平洋沖マーシャル諸島ビキニ環礁での核実験再開を決定した。周辺住民を移住させ、1946年から1958年まで、初の水素爆弾実験(1952年)を含む67回の核実験を実施した。その威力を示す重要で明白な証拠が、1946年の実験で礁湖に沈んだ船と、水素爆弾「ブラボー」の実験でできた巨大なブラボー・クレーターである。一連の実験は広島型原爆の7000回分に匹敵し、環礁の地質や自然環境、人びとの健康などに重大な影響を及ぼした。これによりビキニ環礁は、「核の時代」の幕開けの象徴となった。

source: NFUAJ

Nucleair testcentrum Bikini atol

In het kielzog van de Tweede Wereldoorlog en in de aanloop naar de Koude Oorlog, besloten de Verenigde Staten van Amerika om kernproeven in de Stille Oceaan voort te zetten op het Bikini atol van de Marshall eilanden. Na de verplaatsing van de bewoners werden 67 nucleaire testen uitgevoerd van 1946 tot 1958, waaronder de explosie van de eerste waterstofbom in 1952. De gevolgen zijn duidelijk zichtbaar; gezonken schepen en de gigantische Bravo krater. De proeven hadden grote gevolgen voor de geologie, natuurlijke omgeving en de gezondheid van degenen die blootgesteld werden aan straling. Het atol staat symbool voor het aanbreken van het atoomtijdperk.

Source: unesco.nl

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Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site (Marshall Islands) © UNESCO
Outstanding Universal Value

Brief synthesis

In the wake of World War II, in a move closely related to the beginnings of the Cold War, the United States of America decided to resume nuclear testing. They choose Bikini Atoll in the Marshall archipelago in the Pacific Ocean. After the displacement of the local inhabitants, 23 nuclear tests were carried out from 1946 to 1958,. The cumulative force of the tests in all of the Marshall Islands was equivalent to 7,000 times that of the Hiroshima bomb. Following the use of nuclear bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Bikini tests confirmed that mankind was entering a “nuclear era”. The many military remains bear witness to the beginnings of the Cold War, the race to develop weapons of mass destruction and a geopolitical balance based on terror.

The violence exerted on the natural, geophysical and living elements by nuclear weapons illustrates the relationship which can develop between man and the environment. This is reflected in the ecosystems and the terrestrial, marine and underwater landscapes of Bikini Atoll.

The nuclear tests changed the history of Bikini Atoll and the Marshall Islands, through the displacement of inhabitants, and the human irradiation and contamination caused by radionuclides produced by the tests.

The Bikini Atoll tests, and tests carried out in general during the Cold War, gave rise to a series of images and symbols of the nuclear era. They also led to the development of widespread international movements advocating disarmament.

Criterion (iv): Bikini Atoll is an outstanding example of a nuclear test site. It has many military remains and characteristic terrestrial and underwater landscape elements. It is tangible testimony of the birth of the Cold War and it bears testimony to the race to develop increasingly powerful nuclear weapons. In the wake of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs, the Bikini Atoll site confirmed that mankind was entering a nuclear era. It also bears witness to the consequences of the nuclear tests on the civil populations of Bikini and the Marshall Islands, in terms of population displacement and public-health issues.

Criterion (vi): The ideas and beliefs associated with the Bikini nuclear test site, and more generally with the escalation of military power which characterized the Cold War, are of international significance. These events gave rise to a large number of international movements advocating nuclear disarmament; they gave rise to powerful symbols and to many images associated with the “nuclear era”, which characterized the second part of the 20th century.

Integrity and authenticity

The integrity of the property is acceptable, in view of the simultaneous presence of the remains of human artifacts and the process of natural recomposition which has followed the use of the nuclear bombs. In a very exceptional way, the degradation of the human artifacts by the natural elements forms part of the cultural process illustrated by the property. The integrity of the testimony of the property must be strengthened by the appropriate use of the considerable mass of documentary material associated with the site and its history.

The site has not undergone any substantial reconstruction; human presence there has remained very limited because of the radionuclides produced by the explosions. The authenticity of the material elements constituting the property is unquestionable.

Protection and management measures required

The main threats to the property are the effects of climate change and the presence of stocks of bombs and fuel in the underwater part of the property. The property is protected by the Historic and Cultural Preservation Act (1991). The legal protection and traditional protection in place are appropriate, but they must be reinforced to include the protection of the land-based military remains. In view of the changeable nature of the property, which is slowly returning to a natural state, conservation takes on a specific meaning in this case, and it may be considered therefore that no specific programme to preserve tangible remains is necessary. However, it is essential to ensure safety by dealing with any remaining military risks, to draw up a detailed inventory and to ensure regular monitoring of the constituent parts of the property. The management system is adequate, but it must be confirmed, and must be strengthened in several areas, particularly as regards the Bikini Divers Group, visitor reception and interpretation, the Peace Museum and the documentation centre.