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List of nuclear weapons tests of India

Updated: 11/6/2025, 2:24:13 AM Wikipedia source

India's nuclear test series consists of a pair of series: Pokhran I and Pokhran II. Pokhran I was a single nuclear test conducted in 1974.

Infobox

Country
India
Test site
Pokhran Test Range, Rajasthan
Period
May 1974 – May 1998
Number of tests
4 (6 Devices fired)
Test type
Underground tests (underground, underground shaft)
Device type
Fission and Fusion
Max. yield
45 kt; Scale down of 200 kt model

Tables

India's Pokhran I series tests and detonations · Test Series › Pokhran I
Smiling Buddha
Smiling Buddha
Name
Smiling Buddha
Date time (UT)
18 May 1974 02:34:55.0
Local time zone
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Location
mw- .mw- 27°05′40″N 71°45′13″E / 27.09451°N 71.75365°E / 27.09451; 71.75365 (Smiling Buddha)
Elevation + height
235 m (771 ft) – 107 m (351 ft)
Delivery,Purpose
underground shaft,
Yield
12 kt
Notes
Indira Gandhi declared Smiling Buddha to be a peaceful test.
Name
Date time (UT)
Local time zone
Location
Elevation + height
Delivery,Purpose
Device
Yield
Fallout
References
Notes
Smiling Buddha
18 May 1974 02:34:55.0
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Smiling Buddha)
235 m (771 ft) – 107 m (351 ft)
underground shaft,
12 kt
Indira Gandhi declared Smiling Buddha to be a peaceful test.
India's Pokhran II series tests and detonations · Test Series › Pokhran II
Shakti 1 - 1
Shakti 1 - 1
Name
Shakti 1 - 1
Date time (UT)
11 May 1998 10:13:41.8
Local time zone
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Location
Pokhran, India: White House 27°04′44″N 71°43′20″E / 27.07883°N 71.72231°E / 27.07883; 71.72231 (Shakti 1 - 1)
Elevation + height
226 m (741 ft) – 200 m (660 ft)
Delivery,Purpose
underground shaft,
Yield
45 kt
Notes
Two stage thermonuclear device with fusion boosted primary, intended for missile warhead; test design yield 45 kt, with a 200 kt deployed yield.
Shakti 1 - 2
Shakti 1 - 2
Name
Shakti 1 - 2
Date time (UT)
11 May 1998 10:13:41.8
Local time zone
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Location
Pokhran, India: Taj Mahal 27°04′44″N 71°43′20″E / 27.07883°N 71.72231°E / 27.07883; 71.72231 (Shakti 1 - 2)
Elevation + height
226 m (741 ft) – 150 m (490 ft)
Delivery,Purpose
underground shaft,
Yield
12 kt
Notes
Lightweight pure fission tactical bomb/missile warhead, 12 kt design yield; exact locations of sites is unknown.
Shakti 1 - 3
Shakti 1 - 3
Name
Shakti 1 - 3
Date time (UT)
11 May 1998 10:13:41.8
Local time zone
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Location
Pokhran, India: Kumbhkaran 27°04′44″N 71°43′20″E / 27.07883°N 71.72231°E / 27.07883; 71.72231 (Shakti 1 - 3)
Elevation + height
226 m (741 ft) +
Delivery,Purpose
underground,
Yield
200 t
Notes
Fission experimental device, reportedly made with reactor-grade plutonium. Probably a fusion boosted design without the fusion fuel, 0.3 kt design yield; exact locations of sites is unknown.
Shakti 2 - 1
Shakti 2 - 1
Name
Shakti 2 - 1
Date time (UT)
13 May 1998 06:51:??
Local time zone
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Location
Pokhran, India: Navtala 1 27°04′24″N 71°42′49″E / 27.07347°N 71.71353°E / 27.07347; 71.71353 (Shakti 2 - 1)
Elevation + height
226 m (741 ft) – 20 m (66 ft)
Delivery,Purpose
underground,
Yield
500 t
Notes
A 0.5 kt experimental device; exact locations of sites is unknown.
Shakti 2 - 2
Shakti 2 - 2
Name
Shakti 2 - 2
Date time (UT)
13 May 1998 06:51:??
Local time zone
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Location
Pokhran, India: Navtala 2 27°04′24″N 71°42′49″E / 27.07347°N 71.71353°E / 27.07347; 71.71353 (Shakti 2 - 2)
Elevation + height
226 m (741 ft) +
Delivery,Purpose
underground,
Yield
300 t
Notes
A 0.2 kt experimental device that used uranium-233; exact locations of sites is unknown.
Shakti 2 - 3(canceled)
Shakti 2 - 3(canceled)
Name
Shakti 2 - 3(canceled)
Date time (UT)
13 May 1998 06:51:??
Local time zone
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Location
Pokhran, India: Navtala 3 27°04′24″N 71°42′49″E / 27.0734°N 71.7135°E / 27.0734; 71.7135 (Shakti 2 - 3)
Elevation + height
226 m (741 ft) +
Delivery,Purpose
underground,
Yield
unknown yield
Notes
Not fired; another low yield experimental device Exact locations of sites is unknown.
Name
Date time (UT)
Local time zone
Location
Elevation + height
Delivery,Purpose
Device
Yield
Fallout
References
Notes
Shakti 1 - 1
11 May 1998 10:13:41.8
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Pokhran, India: White House 27°04′44″N 71°43′20″E / 27.07883°N 71.72231°E / 27.07883; 71.72231 (Shakti 1 - 1)
226 m (741 ft) – 200 m (660 ft)
underground shaft,
45 kt
Two stage thermonuclear device with fusion boosted primary, intended for missile warhead; test design yield 45 kt, with a 200 kt deployed yield.
Shakti 1 - 2
11 May 1998 10:13:41.8
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Pokhran, India: Taj Mahal 27°04′44″N 71°43′20″E / 27.07883°N 71.72231°E / 27.07883; 71.72231 (Shakti 1 - 2)
226 m (741 ft) – 150 m (490 ft)
underground shaft,
12 kt
Lightweight pure fission tactical bomb/missile warhead, 12 kt design yield; exact locations of sites is unknown.
Shakti 1 - 3
11 May 1998 10:13:41.8
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Pokhran, India: Kumbhkaran 27°04′44″N 71°43′20″E / 27.07883°N 71.72231°E / 27.07883; 71.72231 (Shakti 1 - 3)
226 m (741 ft) +
underground,
200 t
Fission experimental device, reportedly made with reactor-grade plutonium. Probably a fusion boosted design without the fusion fuel, 0.3 kt design yield; exact locations of sites is unknown.
Shakti 2 - 1
13 May 1998 06:51:??
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Pokhran, India: Navtala 1 27°04′24″N 71°42′49″E / 27.07347°N 71.71353°E / 27.07347; 71.71353 (Shakti 2 - 1)
226 m (741 ft) – 20 m (66 ft)
underground,
500 t
kt experimental device; exact locations of sites is unknown.
Shakti 2 - 2
13 May 1998 06:51:??
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Pokhran, India: Navtala 2 27°04′24″N 71°42′49″E / 27.07347°N 71.71353°E / 27.07347; 71.71353 (Shakti 2 - 2)
226 m (741 ft) +
underground,
300 t
kt experimental device that used uranium-233; exact locations of sites is unknown.
Shakti 2 - 3(canceled)
13 May 1998 06:51:??
IST(+5.5 hrs)
Pokhran, India: Navtala 3 27°04′24″N 71°42′49″E / 27.0734°N 71.7135°E / 27.0734; 71.7135 (Shakti 2 - 3)
226 m (741 ft) +
underground,
unknown yield
Not fired; another low yield experimental device Exact locations of sites is unknown.
India's nuclear testing series summary · Summary
Pokhran I
Pokhran I
Series or years
Pokhran I
Years covered
1974
Tests
1
Devices fired
1
Peaceful use tests
1
Yield range (kilotons)
12
Total yield (kilotons)
12
Pokhran–II
Pokhran–II
Series or years
Pokhran–II
Years covered
1998
Tests
3
Devices fired
5
Yield range (kilotons)
small to 45
Total yield (kilotons)
58
Totals
Totals
Series or years
Totals
Years covered
1974-May-18 to 1998-May-13
Tests
4
Devices fired
6
Peaceful use tests
1
Yield range (kilotons)
0 to 45
Total yield (kilotons)
70
Notes
Total country yield is 0.013% of all nuclear testing.
Series or years
Years covered
Tests
Devices fired
Devices with unknown yield
Peaceful use tests
Non-PTBT tests
Yield range (kilotons)
Total yield (kilotons)
Notes
Pokhran I
1974
1
1
1
12
12
Pokhran–II
1998
3
5
small to 45
58
Totals
1974-May-18 to 1998-May-13
4
6
1
0 to 45
70
Total country yield is 0.013% of all nuclear testing.

References

  1. The US, France and Great Britain have code-named their test events, while the USSR and China did not, and therefore have
  2. To convert the UT time into standard local, add the number of hours in parentheses to the UT time; for local daylight sa
  3. Rough place name and a latitude/longitude reference; for rocket-carried tests, the launch location is specified before t
  4. Elevation is the ground level at the point directly below the explosion relative to sea level; height is the additional
  5. Atmospheric, airdrop, balloon, gun, cruise missile, rocket, surface, tower, and barge are all disallowed by the Partial
  6. Include weapons development, weapon effects, safety test, transport safety test, war, science, joint verification and in
  7. Designations for test items where known, "?" indicates some uncertainty about the preceding value, nicknames for particu
  8. Estimated energy yield in tons, kilotons, and megatons. A ton of TNT equivalent is defined as 4.184 gigajoules (1 gigaca
  9. Radioactive emission to the atmosphere aside from prompt neutrons, where known. The measured species is only iodine-131
  10. The US, France and Great Britain have code-named their test events, while the USSR and China did not, and therefore have
  11. To convert the UT time into standard local, add the number of hours in parentheses to the UT time; for local daylight sa
  12. Rough place name and a latitude/longitude reference; for rocket-carried tests, the launch location is specified before t
  13. Elevation is the ground level at the point directly below the explosion relative to sea level; height is the additional
  14. Atmospheric, airdrop, balloon, gun, cruise missile, rocket, surface, tower, and barge are all disallowed by the Partial
  15. Include weapons development, weapon effects, safety test, transport safety test, war, science, joint verification and in
  16. Designations for test items where known, "?" indicates some uncertainty about the preceding value, nicknames for particu
  17. Estimated energy yield in tons, kilotons, and megatons. A ton of TNT equivalent is defined as 4.184 gigajoules (1 gigaca
  18. Radioactive emission to the atmosphere aside from prompt neutrons, where known. The measured species is only iodine-131
  19. Includes all tests with potential for nuclear fission or fusion explosion, including combat use, singleton tests, salvo
  20. Number of tests which would have been in violation of the Partial Test Ban Treaty of 1963, such as atmospheric, space or
  21. "Small" refers to a value greater than zero but less than 0.5 kt.
  22. Some yields are described like "< 20 kt"; such are scored at one half of the numeric amount, i.e., yield of 10k in this
  23. "Time Zone Historical Database"
    http://www.ietf.org/timezones/
  24. "Nuclear Weapon Archives"
    http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/India/IndiaShakti.html
  25. "Nuclear Weapon Archives"
    http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/India/IndiaRealYields.html
  26. Nuclear Weapons Databook, Vol. 5: British, French, and Chinese Nuclear Weapons
  27. CMR Nuclear Explosion Database (Revision 3)
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