A Tabulation of Chinese Nuclear Device Tests

Country

First plutonium
production reactor goes critical

First test of a
 Pu-based
A-bomb or primary

Time, in months,
 reactor criticality to
A-bomb

Time, in months, first A-bomb to first true thermonuclear

U.S.A.

September, 1944

July, 1945

10

86

U.S.S.R.

June, 1948

August, 1949

14

75

U.K.

July, 1950

October, 1952

27

62

France

January, 1956

February, 1960

49

103

Israel

December, 1963

~ June, 1967*

~40

?

China

October, 1966

December, 1968**

26

32

 *     Israel had one or two nuclear weapons on hand at the time of the Six-Day war, and thus she could have tested in June ‘67 if she had desired to do so.

 **    China’s first nuclear detonation took place on October 16, 1964, an all-HEU weapon. Pu was first used in a nuclear test on December 27, 1968.

A Tabulation of Chinese Nuclear Device Tests

Test
No.

Date

Yield (kt)

Location or
Delivery System

Other Observations
(Based on remarks by Chinese Scientists)

1

16 Oct ‘64

22

Atop a 102 meter high steel tower

Fission device, U-235 implosion, no boosting, weighed 3,410 lbs

2

14 May ‘65

35

Delivered via Hong-6 aircraft, air burst at ~500 m

Fission, U-235 implosion, no boosting.  Probably weaponizing CHIC-1 into an air-droppable bomb

3

9 May ‘66

200-300

Aircraft delivered, air burst

Boosted fission device, U-235, and first use of TN material, Li-6.  Probably first test of Chinese TN primary

4

27 Oct ‘66

12

Medium range ballistic missile,
CSS-1 (Dongfeng 2) Air burst at 569 m

Fission, U-235.  Launched from Shuangchengzi to the Chinese nuclear weapon test site.  (Export model)

5

28 Dec ‘66

122

Atop 102 meter high steel tower

First test of a partial yield thermonuclear, testing the two-stage principle; second test of TN primary.  Too massive to be deliverable as a weapon. 
Used U-235, U-238 and Li-6 D

6

17 June ‘67

3,300

Aircraft delivered, Hong-6A bomber. Parachute retarded air burst at 2,960 m

First thermonuclear weapon, fission-fusion-fission type, using U-235, U-238 and Li-6 D.

7

24 Dec ‘67

10-20

Aircraft delivered, air burst

U-235, U-238 and Li-6 present.  Apparently a failed TN.

8

27 Dec ‘68

3,000

Aircraft delivered, Hong-5 bomber

New thermonuclear device, and first use of plutonium.  (China’s first nuclear reactor went critical in October ’66.)  Pu-239, U-235 and Li-6 D present.

9

23 Sept ‘69

19.2

Tunnel in Nan Shan (South Mountain)

First underground, tunnel test.  It vented.

10

29 Sept ‘69

3,000

Aircraft delivered air burst

Thermonuclear

11

14 Oct ’70

3,000

Aircraft delivered air burst

Thermonuclear

12

18 Nov ‘71

10-15

Partially buried

Fission, with Pu-239 and U-235 present

13

7 Jan ‘72

5-10

Aircraft delivered, by Qian-5 attack jet

Fission, with Pu-239 present

14

18 Mar ‘72

150-200

Aircraft delivered air burst

Thermonuclear, apparent failure.

15

27 June ‘73

2,500

Aircraft delivered, air burst at high altitude

Thermonuclear

 16

17 June ‘74

200-1,000

Atmospheric air burst

Thermonuclear

17

27 Oct ‘75

15

Tunnel in Bei Shan (North Mountain)

Fission device.  Second underground test, six years after the first.

18

23 Jan ‘76

2-20

Atmospheric, near surface

Fission

19

26 Sept ‘76

20-200

Atmospheric air burst

Fission (possible failure of a fusion device.)  Contained Li (DT)

20

17 Oct ‘76

10

Tunnel in Bei Shan
(North Mountain)

Fission

21

17 Nov ‘76

4,000

Aircraft delivered air burst

Test of new thermonuclear bomb; largest Chinese nuclear yield.

22

17 Sept ‘77

20

Atmospheric air burst

Fission

23

15 Mar ‘78

6-20

Atmospheric surface burst

Fission

24

14 Oct ‘78

5

Vertical underground shaft

Fission.  First nuclear test in a vertical underground shaft, vs. tunnel

25

14 Dec ‘78

10-20

Atmospheric surface burst

Fission

26

13 Sept ‘79

Failure

Aircraft delivered surface burst

Parachute did not deploy, no nuclear yield.  (And thus not noted by West)

27

16 Oct ‘80

700

Atmospheric air burst

Last atmospheric test by any nuclear power

28

5 Oct ‘82

1

Vertical underground shaft

First attempt at a neutron bomb, a failure

29

4 May ‘83

1

Tunnel in Bei Shan (North Mountain)

Second attempt at a neutron bomb, a failure

30

6 Oct ‘83

15.1

Vertical underground shaft

Third attempt at a neutron bomb, a failure

31

3 Oct ‘84

12

Vertical underground shaft

Fourth attempt at a neutron bomb, a failure

32

19 Dec ‘84

2-5

Tunel in Bei Shan (North Mountain)

Test of a new approach to a neutron bomb, fifth attempt.  A success

33

5 June ‘87

125

Vertical underground shaft

Partial yield, related to # 27

34

29 Sept ‘88

2

Tunnel in Bei Shan
(North Mountain)

Final proof test of a neutron bomb, which was a success

35

26 May ‘90

10-50

Vertical underground shaft

Probable test of a Pakistani CHIC-4 derivative.  Most likely at 10 kilotons.

36

16 Aug ‘90

200

Vertical underground shaft

Partial yield test related to No. 27.

37

21 May ‘92

420

Vertical underground shaft

A partial yield test, related to No. 27

38

25 Sept ‘92

10

Tunnel in Bei Shan
(North Mountain)

Partial yield test of an earlier device; first test with a sophisticated primary and a dual-axis PINEX experiment.

Multiple Chinese sources advise that with Test No. 38 stockpile development was complete.  Subsequent tests were related to engineering, safety and reliability issues.

39

5 Oct ‘93

40-50

Vertical underground shaft

Partial yield test, related to No. 38, using Insensitive High Explosive for the first time in their nuclear test program

40

10 June ‘94

50

Vertical underground shaft

Safety and reliability test

41

7 Oct ‘94

90

Vertical underground shaft

Safety and reliability test

42

15 May ‘95

140

Vertical underground shaft

Safety And reliability test

43

17 Aug ‘95

90

Vertical underground shaft

Safety and reliability test

44

8 June ‘96

5

Vertical underground shaft

Simultaneous test of two devices with enough distance between them to preclude interference. Both devices probably used insensitive high explosive.

45

8 June ‘96

90

Vertical underground shaft

46

29 July ‘96

10

Tunnel in Bei Shan (North Mountain)

Possible test of insensitive high explosive,  a final safety test.