View source for Bikini Atoll

{{short description|Coral atoll in the Marshall Islands}}
{{For|the band|Bikini Atoll (band)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name      = Bikini Atoll
| other_name         = Pikinni Atoll, Eschscholtz Atoll
| native_name        = 
| nickname           = Kili
| settlement_type    = [[Atoll]]
| motto              = {{nowrap|{{native phrase|mh|Men otemjej rej ilo bein anij}}}}<br/>({{langx|en|Everything is in the hands of God}}){{force singular}}
| anthem             = {{native phrase|mh|Ij Jab Ber Emol}}<br/>({{langx|en|No longer can I stay}}) (official)

{{Native phrase|en|The Star Spangled Banner}} (official)
| image_skyline      = Bikini Atoll 2001-01-14, Landsat 7 ETM+, bands 3-2-1-8.png
| imagesize          = 
| pushpin_map        = Oceania#Pacific Ocean
| image_caption      = Bikini Atoll. Two craters from high-yield atomic bomb tests can be seen on the northwest cape of the atoll, adjacent to Namu island. The larger is from the 15 [[TNT equivalent|Megaton]] [[Castle Bravo|Bravo]] shot, with the smaller 11 Megaton [[Castle Romeo|Romeo]] crater adjoining it.
| image_flag         = Flag of Bikini Atoll.svg
| flag_size          = 150px
| image_seal         = 
| seal_size          = 
| image_shield       = 
| shield_size        = 
| image_blank_emblem = 
| pushpin_map_caption = Location of Bikini Atoll
| blank_emblem_type  = 
| blank_emblem_size  = 
| image_map          = MH_-map_A.png
| mapsize            = 240px
| map_caption        = Map of the Marshall Islands showing Bikini Atoll
| image_map1         = Bikini 2244493428 13643c6505 o.jpg
| mapsize1           = 240px
| map_caption1       = Map of Bikini Atoll
| subdivision_type   = Country
| subdivision_name   = [[Marshall Islands]]
| area_footnotes     = 
| area_total_sq_mi   = 
| area_land_sq_mi    = 2.3
| area_water_sq_mi   = 
| area_water_percent = 
| population_as_of   = 2020
| population_footnotes = 
| population_note    = Population relocated in 1946<br/>Resettled population evacuated in 1978
| population_total   = 5
| population_density_km2 = 
| population_density_sq_mi = 
| timezone           = 
| utc_offset         = 
| timezone_DST       = 
| utc_offset_DST     = 
| coordinates        = {{Coord|11.6|N|165.4|E|region:MH_type:isle|display=inline,title}}
| elevation_footnotes = 
| elevation_ft       = 
| postal_code_type   = 
| postal_code        = 
| area_code          = 
| footnotes          = {{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site
 |child = yes
 |Official_name = Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site
 |ID = 1339
 |Year = 2010
 |Criteria = Cultural: iv; vi
 }}
}}

'''Bikini Atoll''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ɪ|k|ᵻ|n|i}} {{respell|BIK|in|ee}} or {{IPAc-en|b|ᵻ|ˈ|k|iː|n|i}} {{respell|bih|KEE|nee}}; {{langx|mh|Pikinni}} {{IPAc-mh|pikinniy}}, {{Literal translation|coconut place}}),<ref name="turssel2">{{cite web |url=http://www.trussel2.com/MOD/LocP.htm#Pikinni |title=Marshallese-English Dictionary-Place Name Index |access-date=8 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121027150952/http://www.trussel2.com/MOD/LocP.htm#Pikinni |archive-date=27 October 2012}}</ref> known as '''Eschscholtz Atoll''' between the 19th century and 1946,<ref>{{cite web |title=The Marshall Islands: A Brief History |url=http://www.unicover.com/OPUBA565.HTM |access-date=14 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131015023823/http://www.unicover.com/opuba565.htm |archive-date=15 October 2013}}</ref> is a [[coral reef]] in the [[Marshall Islands]] consisting of 23 islands surrounding a  {{convert|229.4|sqmi|km2|1|adj=on}} central [[lagoon]]. The atoll is at the northern end of the [[Ralik Chain]], approximately {{convert|530|mi|km}} northwest of the capital [[Majuro]].

After the [[Second World War]], the atoll was chosen by the United States as a nuclear weapon testing site. It would be the site of the fourth nuclear bomb detonation and would go on to be the site of many more tests. The 167 people who lived on Bikini were instructed to leave so the military could test nuclear bombs,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Commodore Ben H. Wyatt addressing the Bikini Island natives |url=https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/nmah_1303438 |access-date=2024-06-21 |website=americanhistory.si.edu |language=en}}</ref> a [[forced relocation]].<ref name=kiste>{{cite book |last1=Kiste |first1=Robert C. |title=The Bikinians : a study in forced migration |date=1974 |publisher=Cummings Pub. Co |location=Menlo Park, Calif. |isbn=0846537524 |url=https://www.osti.gov/opennet/servlets/purl/16364889.pdf |access-date=2 August 2021 |archive-date=2 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210802024255/https://www.osti.gov/opennet/servlets/purl/16364889.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1946 they moved to [[Rongerik]], a small island east of Bikini Atoll, but it turned out to have inadequate resources to support the population. The islanders began experiencing starvation by early 1948 and were moved again to [[Kwajalein Atoll]].<ref name=engineering/> The United States used the islands and lagoon as the site of 23 [[Nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll|nuclear tests]] until 1958, when it was discovered that the fallout from nuclear testing was much more dangerous than was previously thought. To this day, the Bikini islanders are prohibited from returning home due to nuclear contamination. There are some signs of recovery as the amount of radiation slowly decreases.

In 1972, about 100 residents were voluntarily returned to their home island.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Niedenthal |first=Jack |date=2001 |title=A History of the People of Bikini Following Nuclear Weapons Testing in the Marshall Islands |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00004032-199707000-00003 |journal=Health Physics |volume=73 |issue=1 |pages=28–36 |doi=10.1097/00004032-199707000-00003 |pmid=9199216 |issn=0017-9078 |access-date=25 April 2023 |archive-date=5 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230705061041/https://journals.lww.com/health-physics/Abstract/1997/07000/A_History_of_the_People_of_Bikini_Following.3.aspx |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref> But scientists found dangerously high levels of [[strontium-90]] in well water in May 1978, and the residents' bodies were carrying abnormally high concentrations of [[caesium-137]]. They were evacuated again in September 1978. The atoll is occasionally visited today by divers and a few scientists, and it is occupied by a handful of caretakers. The people of the atoll, which now number in the thousands, have spread out to other Marshallese islands and the United States. A multi-million dollar trust fund, which had been supporting services for many Bikini inhabitants since the 1980s, was drained in the late 2010s.

In the 21st century, the atoll is a [[World Heritage Site]], remembered for its role in the Cold War and the post-nuclear age. It is noted as an enclave of nature, and the radiation has decreased enough that tourism is possible. However, the lingering radioactive contamination makes it unfit to return from what was expected to be short-term evacuation, especially as it is not recommended to eat plants or wildlife.

== Etymology ==

The island's English name is derived from the German colonial name ''Bikini'' given to the atoll when it was part of [[German New Guinea]]. The German name is transliterated from the [[Marshallese language|Marshallese]] name for the island, {{lang|mh|Pikinni}}, ({{IPAc-mh|pikinniy}}) "''Pik''" meaning "plane surface" and "''Ni''" meaning "coconut tree", or ''surface of coconuts''.<ref name=turssel2/>

== Culture ==
{{main|Marshallese culture}}
[[File:Liijabor wearing nieded 1918.jpg|thumb|upright|A woman named Liijabor from Likiep Island, [[Likiep Atoll]] in the [[Marshall Islands]], wears a traditional ''nieded'' or [[Ta'ovala|clothing mat]], {{circa}} 1918]]

Bikini islanders' traditional lifestyle was based on cultivating plants and eating shellfish and fish. They were skilled boatbuilders and navigators, sailing the two-hulled [[proa]] to and from islets around Bikini and other atolls in the Marshall Islands.<ref name=mistoriesintro/> They were relatively isolated and had developed a society bound by extended family association and tradition.<ref name=mistoriesintro/> Every lagoon was led by a king and queen, with a following of chieftains and chief women who constituted a ruling caste.

Japan occupied the islands starting in 1914. The islanders worked the [[copra]] plantations under the watchful eye of the Japanese, who took a portion of the sales. Chiefs could retain as much as $20,000 per year, and the remainder was distributed to the workers. The Marshall islanders took pride in extending hospitality to one another, even distant relatives.<ref name=mcmahon>{{cite journal |journal=Travel |volume=34 |title=The Land of the Model Husband |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FTRQAQAAIAAJ&pg=RA3-PA6 |first=Thomas J. |last=McMahon |date=November 1919 |issue=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161219200035/https://books.google.com/books?id=FTRQAQAAIAAJ&pg=RA3-PA6 |archive-date=19 December 2016}}</ref>

=== Clothing and dress ===

Men traditionally wore a fringed skirt about {{convert|25|to|30|in|cm|-1}} long. Women<ref name=briand/> wore two mats about a yard square each, made by weaving pandanus and hibiscus leaves together<ref name=mistoriesintro/> and belted around the waist.<ref name=bliss>{{cite book |title=The Encyclopedia of Missions |volume=II |first=Edwin Munsell |last=Bliss |publisher=Funk & Wagnalls |location=New York |year=1891}}</ref> Children were usually naked.<ref name=mistoriesintro/> Christian missionaries from [[Oahu|O{{okina}}ahu]] arrived in the late 19th century and influenced the islanders' notions of modesty. They introduced a dress for women which was a long, wide, loose-fitting gown with long sleeves and a high neck, intended to cover as much skin as possible. The dress is called {{lang|mh|wau}} ({{IPAc-mh|wahwiw}}), from the name of the [[Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary|Hawaiian island]] of [[Oahu]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.trussel2.com/MOD/MED2W.htm#wau |title=Marshallese-English Dictionary |website=trussel2.com |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121024231349/http://www.trussel2.com/MOD/MED2w.htm#wau |archive-date=24 October 2012}}</ref>

It is customary to [[Tradition of removing shoes in the home and houses of worship|remove one's shoes or sandals]] when taking a seat at someone's home.<ref name=customs>{{cite web |title=Customs |url=http://elearn.fiu.edu/e-dev/WorldExplorer/Customs/Oceania/Marshall%20Islands.htm |work=Marshall Islands |publisher=FIU College of Business Administration |access-date=25 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100618163049/http://elearn.fiu.edu/e-dev/WorldExplorer/Customs/Oceania/Marshall%20Islands.htm |archive-date=18 June 2010}}</ref> Marshallese women traditionally cover their thighs as well.<ref name="customs" /> Women generally wear cotton [[muumuu|mu{{okina}}umu{{okina}}u]]s or similar clothing that covers most of the body. Personal health is not often discussed except within the family, and women are especially private about female-related health issues,<ref name=briand/> although they are willing to talk about their breasts.<ref name=briand>{{cite journal |title=Community Perspectives on Cultural Considerations for Breast and Cervical Cancer Education among Marshallese Women in Orange County, California |url=http://www.cjhp.org/Volume8_2010/IssueSE/84-89briand.pdf |last1=Briand |first1=Greta |last2=Peters |first2=Ruth |journal=Californian Journal of Health Promotion |year=2010 |volume=8 |pages=84–89 |access-date=25 August 2013 |issue=8 |doi=10.32398/cjhp.v8iSI.2045 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714133222/http://www.cjhp.org/Volume8_2010/IssueSE/84-89briand.pdf |archive-date=14 July 2014 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

Marshallese women swim in mu{{okina}}umu{{okina}}us made of a fine polyester that quickly dries. In the capital of [[Majuro]], revealing [[cocktail dress]]es are not considered appropriate for both islanders and guests.<ref name=encyclopedia>{{cite web |title=Marshall Islands |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Marshall_Islands.aspx |publisher=Encyclopedia.com |access-date=25 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218011640/http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Marshall_Islands.aspx |archive-date=18 December 2012}}</ref> With the increasing influence of Western media, the younger generation wears shorts, though the older generation equates shorts with loose morals.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}} T-shirts, jeans, skirts, and makeup are making their way to the islands via the media.<ref>{{cite web |title=Republic of the Marshall Islands |url=https://www.viu.ca/homestay/host/CultureGrams/Marshall%20Islands.pdf |work=Culture Grams 2008 |location=Ann Arbor, Michigan |access-date=25 August 2013}}{{Dead link|date=June 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

=== Land-based wealth ===
[[File:Aerial view of Bikini Atoll.jpg|left|thumb|Island of the Bikini Atoll]]
The Bikini islanders continue to maintain land rights as the primary measure of wealth.<ref name=divingworldhistory>{{cite web |url=http://www.worldofdiving.com/html/bikinihistory.html |title=Bikini History |access-date=4 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070623121447/http://www.worldofdiving.com/html/bikinihistory.html |archive-date=23 June 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

{{blockquote|To all Marshallese, land is gold. If you were an owner of land, you would be held up as a very important figure in our society. Without land you would be viewed as a person of no consequence... But land here on Bikini is now poison land.<ref name=guyer>{{cite journal |last=Guyer |first=Ruth Levy |title=Radioactivity and Rights |journal=American Journal of Public Health |volume=91 |number=9, issue 9 |date=September 2001 |pmc=1446783 |pages=1371–1376 |doi=10.2105/AJPH.91.9.1371 |pmid=11527760}}</ref>}}

Each family is part of a clan (''Bwij''), which owns all land. The clan owes allegiance to a chief (''Iroij''). The chiefs oversee the clan heads (''Alap''), who are supported by laborers (''Dri-jerbal''). The Iroij control land tenure, resource use and distribution, and settle disputes. The Alap supervise land maintenance and daily activities. The Dri-jerbal work the land including farming, cleaning, and construction.<ref name=mistoriesintro/>

The Marshallese society is [[matrilineal]] and land is passed down from generation to generation through the mother. Land ownership ties families together into clans. Grandparents, parents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, and cousins form extended, close-knit family groups. Gatherings tend to become big events. One of the most significant family events is the first birthday of a child (''kemem''), which relatives and friends celebrate with feasts and song.<ref name="mistoriesintro">{{cite web |title=Introduction to Marshallese Culture |url=http://mistories.org/intro.php |access-date=17 August 2013 |archive-date=20 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020170053/http://mistories.org/intro.php |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Marshallese Culture |url=http://www.visitmarshallislands.com/travel-to-the-marshall-islands |access-date=16 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130824015621/http://www.visitmarshallislands.com/travel-to-the-marshall-islands |archive-date=24 August 2013}}</ref>

Payments made in the 20th century as reparations for damage to the Bikini Atoll and the islanders' way of life have elevated their income relative to other Marshall Island residents. It has caused some Bikini islanders to become economically dependent on the payments from the trust fund. This dependency has eroded individuals' interest in traditional economic pursuits like taro and copra production. The move also altered traditional patterns of social alliance and political organization. On Bikini, rights to land and land ownership were the major factor in social and political organization and leadership. After relocation and settlement on Kili, a dual system of land tenure evolved. Disbursements from the trust fund were based in part to land ownership on Bikini and based on current land tenure on Kili.<ref name=culture/>

Before the residents were relocated, they were led by a local chief and under the nominal control of the Paramount Chief of the Marshall Islands. Afterward, they had greater interaction with representatives of the trust fund and the U.S. government and began to look to them for support.<ref name=culture/>

In the late 2010s, the islanders pushed for complete control of the trust fund, which was tens of millions of dollars. The same leaders which had pushed for increased control, rang up huge bills in travel expenses, buying real estate, aircraft, and boats. In 2016, the Bikini trust fund stood at $71 million in its last audit, with $4 million have been withdrawn. After leasing control, the account was drained leaving only $4 million by 2020, and $100,000 in 2023.<ref name="Variety">{{Cite web |last=Variety |first=Giff Johnson-For |date=2023-05-15 |title=Bikini resettlement trust fund money is history |url=https://www.mvariety.com/news/bikini-resettlement-trust-fund-money-is-history/article_b4a4de00-f222-11ed-a063-4797302b9569.html |access-date=2024-06-21 |website=Marianas Variety News & Views |language=en}}</ref> Then with funds depleted, the power and deliveries to Kili were stopped, and salaries were not paid, this led to declaration of emergency, and the Marshallese government had to step in to try to help.<ref name=":0"/>

=== Language ===

Most Marshallese speak both the [[Marshallese language]] and another language. Some of the languages reflect the nation's history with Germany, Japan, and the United States. Government agencies use Marshallese, though English is very popular also.

== Environment ==

[[File:Sikorsky SH-3G Sea King from Helicopter Combat Support Squadron 1 in flight during an aerial radiation survey over Bikini Atoll in November 1978.jpg|thumb|Vegetation on Bikini Atoll]]
Bikini Atoll is part of the [[Ralik Chain]] (for "sunset chain") within the [[Marshall Islands]].

=== Nuclear test site ===
{{main|Nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll}}
The United States detonated 23 nuclear devices between 1946 and 1958 at [[Nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll|seven test sites]] on the reef, inside the atoll, in the air, and underwater.<ref name=richards/> They had a combined yield of about 77 [[TNT equivalent|Mt]].<ref name="journals.lww.com">{{cite journal |last1=Simon |first1=S.L. |last2=Robison |first2=W.L. |date=July 1997 |title=A Compilation of Nuclear Weapons Test Detonation Data for U.S Pacific Ocean Tests |url=https://journals.lww.com/health-physics/abstract/1997/07000/a_compilation_of_nuclear_weapons_test_detonation.22.aspx |journal=Health Physics |volume=73 |issue=1 |pages=258–64 |doi=10.1097/00004032-199707000-00022 |pmid=9199235 |bibcode=1997HeaPh..73..258S |access-date=2024-07-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041110005808/http://www.eh.doe.gov/health/marshall/marsh/journal/14828.pdf |archive-date=November 10, 2004|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The testing began with the [[Operation Crossroads]] series in July 1946. The residents initially accepted resettlement voluntarily to [[Rongerik Atoll]], believing that they would be able to return home within a short time. However, Rongerik could not produce enough food, and the islanders starved. They could not return home, so they were relocated to [[Kwajalein Atoll]] for six months before choosing to live on [[Kili Island]], a small island one-sixth the size of their home island. Some were able to return to Bikini Island in 1972; however, further testing revealed dangerous levels of [[strontium-90]]. They eventually moved to other atolls in the Marshall Islands and the United States, due to problems with this plan.

In 1954, the [[Castle Bravo]] nuclear test took place on Bikini Atoll, with a yield of 15 Mt.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Beck |first1=Harold L. |last2=Bouville |first2=André |last3=Moroz |first3=Brian E. |last4=Simon |first4=Steven L. |title=Fallout Deposition in the Marshall Islands from Bikini and Enewetak Nuclear Weapons Tests |date=2010-08-01 |journal=Health Physics |language=en |volume=99 |issue=2 |pages=124–142 |doi=10.1097/HP.0b013e3181bbbfbd |pmid=20622548 |pmc=2904645 |bibcode=2010HeaPh..99..124B |issn=0017-9078 }}</ref> This nuclear test was only one out of 67{{efn-la|There is a discrepancy related to the total number of tests conducted: 66 or 67. The total number is 67, but two tests (HARDTACK I SCAEVOLA and HARDTACK I QUINCE) were with zero yield: one was a safety test, the other did not work out.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dtra.mil/Portals/125/Documents/NTPR/newDocs/15-HARDTACK%20I%20%20-%202021.pdf |title=Operation HARDTACK I |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=September 2021 |pages=2–3 |publisher=Defense Threat Reduction Agency |access-date=2024-07-29}}</ref> And sometimes one of them doesn't count. Another source of this discrepancy is the widely cited article by Simon and Robison, the summary of which lists the total number of tests conducted in the Marshall Islands as 66 (23 at Bikini Atoll + 42 at Enewetak Atoll + 1 between the atolls), although the attached table lists data for all 67 tests (23 + 43 + 1).<ref name="journals.lww.com">{{cite journal |last1=Simon |first1=S.L. |last2=Robison |first2=W.L. |date=July 1997 |title=A Compilation of Nuclear Weapons Test Detonation Data for U.S Pacific Ocean Tests |url=https://journals.lww.com/health-physics/abstract/1997/07000/a_compilation_of_nuclear_weapons_test_detonation.22.aspx |journal=Health Physics |volume=73 |issue=1 |pages=258–64 |doi=10.1097/00004032-199707000-00022 |pmid=9199235 |bibcode=1997HeaPh..73..258S |access-date=2024-07-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041110005808/http://www.eh.doe.gov/health/marshall/marsh/journal/14828.pdf |archive-date=November 10, 2004|url-access=subscription }}</ref>}} total nuclear tests launched on the surrounding Marshall Islands and reefs.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://ahf.nuclearmuseum.org/ahf/location/marshall-islands/ |title=Marshall Islands |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website= |publisher=Atomic Heritage Foundation |access-date=2024-07-29}}</ref> The nuclear radiation and fallout that followed the Castle Bravo test alone was substantial enough to discourage future habitation of the islands. Consequently, Bikini Atoll was subject to initial radioactive testing of soil composition and well water. [[Nuclear fallout]] deposits were tested in order to estimate how much area of the island was impacted by radionuclides and caesium-137 specifically. The technology used to measure the estimated amount of nuclear fallout deposit was known as [[HYSPLIT]]. This technology used meteorological sciences to model and map out nuclear fallout depositions of caesium-137 on the Marshall Islands. Initial fallout cloud debris, radionuclide particles, and actual caesium-137 particles were all estimated during nuclear testing. This data was then compared with past radiological testing results collected by HYSPLIT to predict total nuclear fallout deposition of caesium-137 on island soil.

The United States government established several trust funds which {{As of|2013|lc=y}} covered medical treatment and other costs and paid about $550 annually to each individual.<ref name="reparations" />

=== Geography ===
{{main|Geography of the Marshall Islands}}
Some {{convert|46|mi|km}} northwest of the atoll is [[Wōdejebato]], a probable [[shield volcano]] that is connected to it through a [[submarine ridge]].
[[File:Map-Marshall-Bikini.PNG|thumb|Location of Bikini Atoll highlighted]]
There are 23 islands in the Bikini Atoll; the islands of Bokonijien, Aerokojlol and part of Namu were destroyed during the nuclear tests.<ref name=facts>{{cite web |title=Bikini Atoll Reference Facts |url=http://www.bikiniatoll.com/facts.html |access-date=12 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130809021521/http://www.bikiniatoll.com/facts.html |archive-date=9 August 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://whc.unesco.org/uploads/nominations/1339.pdf |title=Bikini Atoll |date=January 2009 |publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre |page=20 |access-date=2024-07-29 |ref={{harvid|UNESCO|2009}}}}</ref> The islands are composed of low coral limestone and sand.<ref>Emery, Kenneth O.; Tracey, J. I. Jr; Ladd, H. S. (1954). [https://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/0260a/report.pdf Geology of Bikini and Nearby Atolls] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221125234609/https://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/0260a/report.pdf |date=25 November 2022 }} (PDF). Washington: U.S. Geological Survey. {{doi|10.3133/pp260A}}.</ref> The average elevation is only about {{convert|7|ft}} above low tide level. The total lagoon area is {{convert|229.4|sqmi|km2|1|adj=on}}. The primary home of the islanders was the most northeast and largest [[islet]], Bikini Island, totaling {{convert|586|acres}} and {{convert|2.5|mi|km}} long.

=== Flora and fauna ===

The islanders cultivated native foods including [[coconut]], [[pandanus]], [[papaya]], [[banana]], [[arrowroot]], [[taro]], [[Lime (fruit)|limes]], [[breadfruit]], and [[pumpkin]]. A wide variety of other trees and plants are also present on the islands.<ref name=facts/> After the completion of nuclear tests, the islands of Bikini and Enyu were replanted with coconut trees in a square grid pattern, each {{convert|30|ft|m|abbr=on}} apart.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Fosberg |first=F. Raymond |date=1988 |title=Vegetation of Bikini Atoll, 1985 |url=https://www.sprep.org/att/IRC/eCOPIES/Countries/Marshall_Islands/35.pdf |journal=Atoll Research Bulletin |volume=315 |pages=1–28 |doi=10.5479/si.00775630.315.1 |access-date=22 July 2022 |archive-date=30 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230130160416/https://www.sprep.org/att/IRC/eCOPIES/Countries/Marshall_Islands/35.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

The islanders were skilled fishermen. They used fishing line made from coconut husk and hooks from sharpened sea shells. They used more than 25 methods of fishing.<ref name=mistoriesintro/> The islanders raised ducks, pigs, and chickens for food and kept dogs and cats as pets. Animal life in the atoll was severely affected by the atomic bomb testing. Existing land species include small lizards, hermit crabs, and coconut crabs. The islands are frequented by a wide variety of birds.<ref name=facts/>

To allow vessels with a larger draft to enter the lagoon and to prepare for the atomic bomb testing, the United States used explosives to cut a channel through the reef and to blow up large coral heads in the lagoon. The underwater nuclear explosions carved large holes in the bottom of the lagoon that were partially refilled by blast debris. The explosions distributed vast amounts of irradiated, pulverized coral and mud across wide expanses of the lagoon and surrounding islands. {{As of|2008}}, the atoll had recovered nearly 65% of the biodiversity that existed prior to radioactive contamination, but 28 species of coral appear to be locally extinct.<ref name=richards>{{cite journal |title=Bikini Atoll coral biodiversity resilience five decades after nuclear testing |url=http://www.bikiniatoll.com/BIKINICORALS.pdf |journal=Marine Pollution Bulletin |volume=56 |year=2008 |pages=503–515 |access-date=13 August 2013 |author1=Zoe T. Richards |author2=Maria Beger |author3=Silvia Pinca |author4=Carden C. Wallace |pmid=18187160 |issue=3 |doi=10.1016/j.marpolbul.2007.11.018 |bibcode=2008MarPB..56..503R |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029195238/http://www.bikiniatoll.com/BIKINICORALS.pdf |archive-date=29 October 2013}}</ref>

The radioactive contamination has prevented humans from fishing these grounds, and for that reason, there is an abundance of marine wildlife in the waters around the atoll, much larger than in other parts of the ocean. [[Coconut crab]]s are particularly abundant on the island.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gorvett |first=Zaria |title=What would happen if we stopped fishing? |url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20230721-what-would-happen-if-we-stopped-fishing |access-date=2023-07-29 |website=www.bbc.com |date=23 July 2023 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Climate ===

The islands are hot and humid. The temperature on Bikini Atoll is {{convert|27|to|29|°C|°F}} year-round. The water temperature is also {{convert|27|to|29|°C|°F}} all year. The islands border the Pacific [[typhoon]] belt. The wet season is from May to December while the [[trade winds]] from January through May produce higher wave action.<ref name=facts/>

== Resident and non-resident population ==
During WWII, the atoll had been occupied by Japanese troops, and American naval ships, ground artillery, and B-24 Liberator bombers attacked the island, killing many of the 8,000 soldiers.{{citation needed|date=June 2024}}
 
[[File:Native outriggers ar loaded aboard LST-1108 at Bikini Atoll, in March 1946 (146763094).jpg|thumb|Bikini islander canoes are loaded for their relocation]]
When the United States got the islanders to relocate in 1946,<ref name=kiste/> 19 islanders lived elsewhere. The 167 residents, comprising about 40 families<ref name=coldwarrior>{{cite news |title=Bikini Atoll |url=http://coldwarwarrior.com/2013/04/06/bikini-atoll/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130413204153/http://coldwarwarrior.com/2013/04/06/bikini-atoll/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=13 April 2013 |access-date=12 August 2013}}</ref> who lived on the atoll, moved to Rongerik Atoll. The islands were able to produce much less food than they had on Bikini, and there were far fewer fish in the waters. By early 1948, the people were close to starvation. U.S. investigators concluded they must be moved, and they were relocated to Kwajalein Atoll.<ref name=engineering/> They were first evacuated to Kwaj, where the islanders lived in tents adjacent to the concrete runway in use by the U.S. Navy for six months while a new and better location was selected. Finally, Kili Island was chosen.<ref name=engineering>{{cite web |last1=Wendorf |first1=Marcia |title=What Became of the Residents of Bikini Atoll |url=https://interestingengineering.com/science/what-became-of-the-residents-of-bikini-atoll |website=interestingengineering.com |access-date=21 February 2023 |date=26 March 2019 |archive-date=21 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230221231115/https://interestingengineering.com/science/what-became-of-the-residents-of-bikini-atoll |url-status=live }}</ref>

They were moved once again in November 1948 to Kili Island, when the population numbered 184. They were later given public lands on Ejit and a few families initially moved there to grow [[copra]]. In 1972, about 100 Bikini islanders returned to live on the atoll after they were reassured that it was safe. They remained for about 6 years until scientists found an 11-fold increase in the caesium-137 body burdens and determined that the island was not safe after all. The 178 residents were evacuated in September 1978 once again.<ref name=divingworldhistory/>

Since then a number of descendants have moved to [[Majuro]] (the Marshall Islands' capital), other Marshall Islands, and the United States. In 1999, there were 2,600 total individuals; 1,000 islanders living on Kiji, 700 in Majuro, 275 on Ejit, 175 on other Marshall Islands or atolls, and 450 in the United States. Of those, 81 were among those who left the atoll in 1946.<ref name=divingworldfacts>{{cite web |title=Bikini Facts |url=http://www.worldofdiving.com/html/bikinifacts.html |access-date=11 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921055633/http://www.worldofdiving.com/html/bikinifacts.html |archive-date=21 September 2013}}</ref> In 2001, the population of the dispersed islanders was 2,800.<ref name=gwynne>{{cite web |last=Gwynne |first=S.C. |title=Paradise With an Asterisk |url=http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/nature/Paradise-With-An-Asterisk.html?page=all |publisher=Outside Magazine |access-date=9 August 2013 |date=5 October 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130816055720/http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/nature/Paradise-With-An-Asterisk.html?page=all |archive-date=16 August 2013}}</ref> By 2013, there were about 4,880 Bikini islanders descended from the original Bikinis, with 1,250 living on Kili Island, 2,150 on [[Majuro]] (and 280 on Ejit, an island in Majuro Atoll), 350 on the other Marshall Islands, and 850 in the United States.<ref name=engineering/>

As of March 2016, there were 5,400 living Bikini islanders: 800 islanders living on Kili, 2,550 on Majuro, 300 on Ejit, 350 on other Marshall Islands, and 1,400 in the United States and other countries. Of that number, 25 lived on Bikini in 1946.<ref>{{cite web |title=Bikini Facts |url=https://www.bikiniatoll.com/facts.html |access-date=6 June 2019 |archive-date=5 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190605231129/https://www.bikiniatoll.com/facts.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The resident population of the atoll is currently 4–6 caretakers,<ref name=borrett/><ref name=gwynne/> including Edward Maddison, who lived on Bikini Island from 1985 to 2020.  His grandfather was one of the original residents relocated in 1946.<ref>{{cite web |last=Pena |first=Tony |title=Return To Bikini Atoll |url=http://rovingangler.com/sample_articles/return_to_bikini_atoll |access-date=20 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921055236/http://rovingangler.com/sample_articles/return_to_bikini_atoll |archive-date=21 September 2013}}</ref> He helped the U.S. Department of Energy with soil monitoring, testing cleanup methods, mapping the wrecks in the lagoon, and accompanying visitors on dives.<ref name=kattenburg2>{{cite web |last=Kattenburg |first=Dave |title=After the bombs |work=New Internationalist |date=October 2007 |url=http://newint.org/columns/currents/2007/10/01/nuclear-testing/ |publisher=New Internationalist Magazine |access-date=20 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130820041933/http://newint.org/columns/currents/2007/10/01/nuclear-testing/ |archive-date=20 August 2013}}</ref> He was also the [[divemaster]] of Bikini Atoll Divers.<ref name=kattenburg2/> Maddison died in [[Majuro]], Marshall Islands, on March 29, 2020.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Edward Maddison, Bikini Atoll Divemaster |url=https://scubaboard.com/community/threads/edward-maddison-bikini-atoll-divemaster.593983/ |access-date=2022-09-17 |website=ScubaBoard |date=28 March 2020 |language=en-US |archive-date=20 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920170406/https://scubaboard.com/community/threads/edward-maddison-bikini-atoll-divemaster.593983/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

== History ==
Humans have inhabited Bikini Atoll for about 3,600 years.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://archive.org/details/naturalhistoryof02deva |page=333 |title=The Natural History of Enewetak Atoll |year=1987}}</ref> U.S. Army Corps of Engineers archaeologist Charles F. Streck Jr., found bits of charcoal, fish bones, shells and other artifacts under {{convert|3|ft|m|abbr=off|sp=us}} of sand. [[Carbon-dating]] placed the age of the artifacts at between 1960 and 1650 BC. Other discoveries on Bikini and Eneu island were carbon-dated to between 1000 BC and 1 BC, and others between AD 400 and 1400<ref name=taggart>{{cite web |last=Taggart |first=Stewart |title=Bikini Excavation Indicates Early Man in Micronesia |url=http://www.bikiniatoll.com/bikiniexcav.html |publisher=Associated Press |access-date=12 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927155230/http://www.bikiniatoll.com/bikiniexcav.html |archive-date=27 September 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Streck |first1=Charles F. |date=1990 |title=Prehistoric Settlement in Eastern Micronesia: Archaeology on Bikini Atoll, Republic of the Marshall Islands |url=https://micronesica.org/sites/default/files/supp02-22ed.pdf |journal=Micronesica |volume=Suppl. 2 |pages=256 |doi= |access-date=August 6, 2023}}</ref> though samples may not have been collected from secure [[Stratigraphy|stratigraphic]] contexts and older driftwood samples may have affected results.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kirch |first1=P. V. |last2=Weisler |first2=M. I. |date=1994 |title=Archaeology in the Pacific Islands: An Appraisal of Recent Research |jstor=41053094 |journal=Journal of Archaeological Research |volume=2 |issue=4 |pages=292 |doi=10.1007/BF02231482|s2cid=144401071 }}</ref>

[[File:Langhans1897 map Bikini.jpg|thumb|Map of Bikini Atoll, taken from the 1893 map ''Schutzgebiet der Marshall Inseln'', published in 1897]]

On October 1, 1529, the Spanish ship ''La Florida'', under the command of [[Álvaro de Saavedra Cerón|Álvaro de Saavedra]], stopped at a lush atoll, which Saavedra called [[Los Jardines]] ({{langx|en|The Gardens}}). The atoll may have been Bikini or [[Enewetak Atoll]]. The Spaniards went ashore and ate with the islanders. According to an account of the voyage, the feast ended abruptly when the island's chief inquired about the purpose of Saavedra's musket. When Saavedra fired it into the air, the islanders fled.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hezel |first=Francis X. |date=1983 |title=The First Taint of Civilization: A History of the Caroline and Marshall Islands in Pre-colonial Days, 1521–1885 |series=Pacific Islands Monograph Series |location=Honolulu |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |pages=16–17 |isbn=9780824816438}}</ref>

German-Russian explorer [[Otto von Kotzebue]] was the first westerner to have undisputedly seen the atoll during his 1816 and 1817 voyages.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.everyculture.com/Oceania/Bikini.html |title=Bikini |access-date=16 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130827204226/http://www.everyculture.com/Oceania/Bikini.html |archive-date=27 August 2013}}</ref> He named it ''Eschscholtz Atoll'' after [[Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz]], the ship's [[naturalist]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Johann Friedrich Gustav von Eschscholtz {{!}} Shellers From the Past and Present |url=https://www.conchology.be/?t=9001&id=17952 |website=conchology.be |access-date=24 January 2019 |language=en |archive-date=8 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308082637/https://www.conchology.be/?t=9001&id=17952 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1834, the captain of a trading schooner and two of his crew members were killed at Bikini Atoll. Three vessels were sent to search for the captain, and when the [[Hawaiian Kingdom|Hawaiian]] [[brig]] ''Waverly'' discovered evidence of his death, the crew killed 30 Marshallese hostages in retaliation.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hezel |first=Francis X. |date=1983 |title=The First Taint of Civilization: A History of the Caroline and Marshall Islands in Pre-colonial Days, 1521–1885 |series=Pacific Islands Monograph Series |location=Honolulu |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |page=199|isbn=9780824816438}}</ref> Bikini and the other northern Marshall Islands had less European contact and settlement than the southern islands, but in the 1870s, several [[blackbirding]] ships kidnapped women from the northern islands to sell into [[sexual slavery]] in Fiji.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hezel |first=Francis X. |date=1983 |title=The First Taint of Civilization: A History of the Caroline and Marshall Islands in Pre-colonial Days, 1521–1885 |series=Pacific Islands Monograph Series |location=Honolulu |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |page=237|isbn=9780824816438}}</ref>

The [[German Empire]] annexed the Marshall Islands in 1885.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Churchill |first1=William |author-link1=William Churchill (ethnologist) |date=1920 |title=Germany's Lost Pacific Empire |url=https://archive.org/details/sim_geographical-review_1920-08_10_2/page/84 |jstor=207706 |journal=Geographical Review |volume=10 |issue=2 |pages=84–90|doi=10.2307/207706 |bibcode=1920GeoRv..10...84C }}</ref> The Germans used the atoll to produce [[copra oil]] from coconuts, although contact with the native population was infrequent. The atoll's climate is drier than the more fertile southern Marshall Islands which produced more copra. Bikini islanders were recruited into developing the [[copra]] trade during the German colonial period.<ref name=culture>{{cite web |title=Bikini |url=http://www.everyculture.com/Oceania/Bikini.html |publisher=Countries and their Cultures |access-date=12 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130827204226/http://www.everyculture.com/Oceania/Bikini.html |archive-date=27 August 2013}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=August 2023}}

=== Japanese occupation ===
Bikini was captured along with the rest of the Marshall Islands by the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]] in 1914 during [[World War I]] and mandated to the [[Empire of Japan]] by the [[League of Nations]] in 1920. The Japanese administered the island under the [[South Seas Mandate]], but mostly left local affairs in the hands of traditional local leaders until the start of [[World War II]]. At the outset of the war, the Marshall Islands suddenly became a strategic outpost for the Japanese. They built and manned a watchtower on the island, an outpost for the Japanese headquarters on Kwajalein Atoll, to guard against an American invasion of the islands.<ref name=Niedenthal/>

=== World War II ===
{{main|Battle of Kwajalein|Battle of Eniwetok}}

The islands remained relatively unscathed by the war until February 1944, when in a bloody [[Battle of Kwajalein|battle]], the American forces captured Kwajalein Atoll. At the battle's conclusion, there were only five surviving Japanese soldiers left on Bikini, and they chose to die by suicide rather than allow themselves to be captured.<ref name=Niedenthal/> This was followed by another difficult fight in the [[Battle of Eniwetok]].

For the U.S., the battle represented both the next step in its island-hopping march to Japan and a significant moral victory, as it was the first time the Americans had penetrated the "outer ring" of the Japanese Pacific sphere. For the Japanese, the battle represented the failure of the beach-line defense. Japanese defenses became prepared in depth, and the battles of Peleliu, Guam, and the Marianas proved far more costly to the U.S. The base became part of the vast US [[Naval Base Marshall Islands]].

=== Residents relocated ===
{{main|Nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll}}

[[File:Leaving-bikini.jpg|thumb|left|7 March 1946, 167{{efn-la|Another area of ambiguity is the number of Bikini Atoll natives who were resettled. There are sources that put the total number of settlers at 161,<ref name=crossroads/> but the consensus seems to be 167.{{sfn|UNESCO|2009|loc=Annex 2-1}}}} residents of Bikini Island board LST 1108 as they depart from Bikini Atoll]]
[[File:Operation Crossroads - Moving of Bikinians to Rongerik, March 7, 1946.jpg|thumb|upright|Bikini islanders arrive on Rongerik Atoll and unload [[pandanus]] for thatching the roofs of their new buildings.<ref name=exhibtt>{{cite web |title=The Republic of the Marshall Islands and the United States: A Strategic Partnership |url=http://www.rmiembassyus.org/Exhib%20TT.htm |publisher=Embassy of the Marshall Islands of the United States |access-date=18 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130809062016/http://www.rmiembassyus.org/Exhib%20TT.htm |archive-date=9 August 2013}}</ref>]]

After World War II, the United States was engaged in a [[Cold War]] [[nuclear arms race]] with the [[Soviet Union]] to build bigger and more destructive bombs.<ref name=Niedenthal>{{cite web |last=Niedenthal |first=Jack |title=A Short History of the People of Bikini Atoll |url=http://www.bikiniatoll.com/history.html |access-date=7 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070625154117/http://www.bikiniatoll.com/history.html |archive-date=25 June 2007}}</ref>

The nuclear weapons testing at Bikini Atoll program was a series of 23 [[nuclear weapons|nuclear devices]] detonated by the United States between 1946 and 1958 at seven test sites. The test weapons were detonated on the reef itself, on the sea, in the air and underwater<ref name=richards/> with a combined explosive yield of about 77&nbsp;[[TNT equivalent|Mt]]. Shortly after World War II ended, President [[Harry S. Truman]] directed Army and Navy officials to secure a site for testing nuclear weapons on American warships. While the Army had seen the results of a land-based explosion, the Navy wanted to know the effect of a nuclear weapon on ships. They wanted to determine whether ships could be spaced at sea and in ports in a way that would make nuclear weapons ineffective against vessels.<ref name=newsweek>{{cite web |title=Bikini |url=http://www.bikiniatoll.com/Newsweek1946.html |date=1 July 1946 |publisher=Newsweek |access-date=13 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016003324/http://www.bikiniatoll.com/Newsweek1946.html |archive-date=16 October 2013}}</ref>

Bikini was distant from both regular sea and air traffic, making it an ideal location. In February 1946, Navy Commodore Ben H. Wyatt, the military governor of the Marshall Islands, asked the 167 [[Micronesia]]n inhabitants of the atoll to voluntarily and temporarily relocate so the United States government could begin testing atomic bombs for "the good of mankind and to end all world wars." After "confused and sorrowful deliberation" among the Bikinians, their leader, King Juda, agreed to the U.S. relocation request, announcing {{Small|MEN OTEMJEJ REJ ILO BEIN ANIJ}}, which translates as "Everything is in God's hands."<ref>{{cite web |title=Bikini Atoll – The Official Website of Bikini Atoll (Marshall Islands) |url=http://www.bikiniatoll.net/ |website=Bikini Atoll |access-date=8 April 2022 |archive-date=29 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220129130627/http://www.bikiniatoll.net/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Niedenthal"/> Nine of the eleven family heads, or ''alaps'', chose [[Rongerik Atoll|Rongerik]] as their new home.<ref name=crossroads>{{cite web |url=https://archive.org/details/operationcrossro00unit |title=Operation Crossroads – The Official Pictorial Record |year=1946 |publisher=W. H. Wise and Co. Inc. |location=New York |page=21}}</ref>

In February, Navy [[Seabee]]s helped them to disassemble their church and community house and prepare to relocate them to their new home. On 7 March 1946, the residents gathered their personal belongings and saved building supplies. They were transported {{convert|125|mi}} eastward on U.S. Navy [[Landing Ship, Tank|landing ship]] 1108 to the uninhabited [[Rongerik Atoll]], which was one-sixth the size of Bikini Atoll.<ref name=crossroads/> No one lived on Rongerik because it had an inadequate water and food supply and due to deep-rooted traditional beliefs that the island was haunted by the ''Demon Girls of Ujae''. The Navy left them with a few weeks of food and water which soon proved to be inadequate.<ref name=Niedenthal/>

==== Nuclear testing program ====

{{main|Nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll}}
[[File:Crossroads baker explosion.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Wilson cloud]] from test Baker, situated just offshore from Bikini Island at top of the picture. ]]
[[File:Operation Crossroads Baker Edit.jpg|thumb|Another view of the Crossroads Baker nuclear test, 1946]]
The weapons testing began with the [[Operation Crossroads]] series in July 1946. The [[Operation Crossroads#Test Baker|''Baker'' test's]] [[radioactive contamination]] of all the target ships was the first case of immediate, concentrated [[radioactive fallout]] from a nuclear explosion. Chemist [[Glenn T. Seaborg]], the longest-serving chairman of the [[United States Atomic Energy Commission|Atomic Energy Commission]], called ''Baker'' "the world's first nuclear disaster."<ref>{{cite book |last=Weisgall |first=Jonathan |year=1994 |title=Operation Crossroads: The Atomic Tests at Bikini Atoll |location=Annapolis, Maryland |publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=978-1-55750-919-2 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/operationcrossro0000weis |page=ix}}</ref> This was followed by a series of later tests that left the islands of the atoll contaminated with enough radioactivity, particularly caesium-137, to contaminate food grown in the soil.

A third nuclear test called Charlie was called off after the first two. These were the last tests in Bikini Atoll until 1954, when it was chosen as the location for [[Operation Castle]] series. The first shot Bravo, had a higher yield then expected to due an unexpected [[Isotopes of lithium|Lithium-7]] reaction. This along with freak weather occurrences caused the fallout to spread much further than anticipated, affecting neighbouring atolls and the Japanese fishing boat [[Daigo Fukuryū Maru]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2022-05-12 |title=A Short History of the People of Bikini Atoll |url=https://www.bikiniatoll.com/history.html |access-date=2024-06-21 |website=HISTORY |language=en}}</ref>

[[File:Bravo Fallout.jpg|thumb|Fallout from Bravo nuclear test. The bomb yield was 15 megatons, with an expected yield of 4–8 megatons, marking it as the largest bomb detonated by the US]]

Four more detonations occurred as part of the [[Operation Castle|Castle]] series, with a combined yield of 46.5 megatons.

In 1956, [[Operation Redwing]] was conducted at the Atoll, with six total detonations and a combined yield of 18.2 megatons.

The final round of tests occurred in 1958 as part of the larger [[Operation Hardtack I]]. Eleven detonations occurred with a combined yield of 21 megatons.

==== Strategic Trust Territory ====
{{main|Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands}}

In 1947, the United States convinced the United Nations to designate the islands of Micronesia a United Nations [[Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands|Strategic Trust Territory]]. This was the only trust ever granted by the U.N.<ref name=kattenburg>{{cite web |last=Kattenburg |first=David |title=Stranded on Bikini |url=http://www.greenplanetmonitor.net/news/2010/12/stranded-on-bikini/ |publisher=Green Planet Monitor |access-date=19 August 2013 |date=December 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120830013643/http://www.greenplanetmonitor.net/news/2010/12/stranded-on-bikini/ |archive-date=30 August 2012}}</ref> The [[United States Navy]] controlled the Trust from a headquarters in [[Guam]] until 1951, when the [[United States Department of the Interior]] took over control, administering the territory from a base in [[Saipan]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://libweb.hawaii.edu/digicoll/ttp/ttpi.html |title=Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands |publisher=University of Hawaii |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160130101809/http://libweb.hawaii.edu/digicoll/ttp/ttpi.html |archive-date=30 January 2016}}</ref> The directive stated that the United States should "promote the economic advancement and self-sufficiency of the inhabitants, and to this end shall... protect the inhabitants against the loss of their lands and resources..."<ref name=Niedenthal/>

Despite the promise to "protect the inhabitants", from July 1946 through July 1947, the residents of Bikini Atoll were left alone on Rongerik Atoll and were starving for lack of food. A team of U.S. investigators concluded in late 1947 that the islanders must be moved immediately. Press from around the world harshly criticized the U.S. Navy for ignoring the people. [[Harold L. Ickes|Harold Ickes]], a syndicated columnist, wrote "The natives are actually and literally starving to death."<ref name=Niedenthal/> The islanders were moved again, this time to [[Kwajalein Atoll]].<ref name=engineering/>

==== Move to Kili Island ====
{{further|Kili Island}}
[[File:Kili Island - NASA Astronaut Photography.png|thumb|Kili Island, of the Marshall Islands. Although not one of the smaller islands, it is not an atoll with a protected lagoon.]]
In January 1948, Leonard Mason, an anthropologist from the University of Hawaii, visited Rongerik Atoll and was horrified at what he found. One resident of Rongerik commented,<ref name=guyer/>

{{blockquote|We'd get a few fish, then the entire community would have to share this meager amount... The fish were not fit to eat there. They were poisonous because of what they ate on the reef. We got sick from them, like when your arms and legs fall asleep and you can't feel anything. We'd get up in the morning to go to our canoes and fall over because we were so ill... Then we started asking these men from America [to] bring us food... We were dying, but they didn't listen to us.}}

Mason requested that food be brought to the islanders on Rongerik immediately along with a medical officer. The Navy then selected [[Ujelang Atoll]] for their temporary home, and some young men from the Bikini Atoll population went ahead to begin constructing living accommodations. But U.S. Trust Authorities changed their mind. They decided to use [[Enewetak Atoll]] as a second nuclear weapons test site and relocated the residents to Ujelang Atoll instead and to the homes built for the Bikini Islanders.<ref name=Niedenthal/>

In March 1948, 184 malnourished Bikini islanders were relocated again to [[Kwajalein Atoll]]. They were given tents on a strip of grass alongside the airport runway to live in.<ref name=kattenburg/> In June 1948, the Bikini residents chose [[Kili Island]] as a long-term home.<ref name=Niedenthal/> The extremely small, {{convert|200|acres}} ({{convert|.36|sqmi}}) island was uninhabited and wasn't ruled by a paramount ''iroij'', or king due to its size. It also lacks a coral reef. In June, the Bikini community chose two dozen men to accompany eight [[Seabee]]s to Kili to begin construction of a village. In November 1948, the residents, now totaling 184 individuals, moved to Kili Island,<ref name=Niedenthal/> at {{convert|0.36|sqmi|km2}}, one of the smallest islands in the Marshall Island chain. They soon learned they could no longer fish the way they had on Bikini Atoll. Kili lacked the calm, protected lagoon.<ref name=kattenburg/> Living on Kili Island effectively destroyed their culture that had been based on fishing and island-hopping canoe voyages to various islets around Bikini Atoll. Kili did not provide enough food for the transplanted residents.<ref name=guyer/>

==== Failed resettlement ====

After their relocation to Kili, the Bikini residents continued to suffer from inadequate food supplies. Kili is a small island without a lagoon, and most of the year it is exposed to {{convert|10|to|20|foot|abbr=on}} waves that make fishing and putting canoes out difficult. Starvation ensued. In 1949, the Trust Territory administration donated a {{convert|40|ft|adj=on}} ship for transporting copra between Kili and [[Jaluit Atoll]], but the ship was wrecked in heavy surf while delivering [[copra]] and other fruit.<ref name=Niedenthal/>
The U.S. Trust Authorities airdropped food onto Kili. The residents had to rely on imported USDA rice and canned goods and had to buy food with their supplemental income.<ref name=Niedenthal/>

During 1955 and 1956, ships dispatched by the U.S. Trust Territory continually experienced problems unloading food because of the rough seas around the island, leading to additional food shortages. The people once again suffered from starvation and the shortages increased in 1956. The U.S. suggested that some of the Bikini Islanders move to Jaluit where food was more readily available. A few people moved.<ref name=kattenburg/>

The United States opened a satellite community for the families on public land on [[Jaluit Atoll]], {{convert|30|mi}} north. Three families moved there to produce [[copra]] for sale and other families rotated living there later on.<ref name=Niedenthal/> Their homes on both Kili and Jaluit were struck by typhoons during 1957 and 1958, sinking their supply ship and damaging crops.

==== Return to Bikini Atoll ====
[[File:Construction of houses in Bikini Atoll.jpg|thumb|Houses built for the first return to Bikini in the 1960s.]]
In June 1968, based on scientific advice that the radiation levels were sufficiently reduced, President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] promised the 540 Bikini Atoll family members living on Kili and other islands that they would be able to return to their home. The Atomic Energy Commission cleared radioactive debris from the island, and the U.S. Trust Territory was in charge of rebuilding structures and replanting crops on the atoll. But shortly afterward, the Trust Territory ended regular air flights between Kwajalein Atoll and Bikini Atoll, which seriously impeded progress. Coconut trees were finally replanted in 1972, but the AEC learned that the [[coconut crab]]s retained high levels of radioactivity and could not be eaten. The Bikini Council voted to delay a return to the island as a result.<ref name=Niedenthal/>

Three extended families, eventually totaling about 100 people, moved back to their home island in 1972 despite the risk. But 3 years later, a team of scientists performed additional tests on the island and its inhabitants. They found some wells were too radioactive for use and determined that the pandanus and breadfruit were also dangerous for human consumption. Urine samples from the islanders on Bikini Atoll showed low levels of [[plutonium-239]] and [[plutonium-240]]. As a result, the Bikini community filed a federal lawsuit seeking a complete scientific survey of Bikini and the northern Marshall Islands. Inter-departmental squabbling over responsibility for the costs delayed the work for three years.<ref name=Niedenthal/> Then in May 1977 scientists found dangerously high levels of [[strontium-90]] in the well water exceeding the U.S. maximum allowed limits.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bikiniatoll.com/history.html |title=A Short History of the People of Bikini Atoll |access-date=27 June 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070625154117/http://www.bikiniatoll.com/history.html |archive-date=25 June 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref> In June, the Department of Energy stated that "All living patterns involving Bikini Island exceed Federal [radiation] guidelines for thirty-year population doses." Later that year scientists discovered an 11-fold increase in the caesium-137 body burdens in all of the people living on the atoll.<ref name=Niedenthal/> In May 1978 officials from the U.S. Department of the Interior described the 75% increase in radioactive caesium-137 found as "incredible".<ref name=divingworldhistory/>

Women were experiencing [[miscarriage]]s, [[stillbirth]]s, and genetic abnormalities in their children.<ref name=bik12>{{cite web |url=http://www.mauinews.com/page/content.detail/id/558769/Survivors-of-nuke-testing-seek-justice.html?nav=10 |title=Survivors of nuke testing seek justice: Marshall Islanders on Maui rally to share nation's story |first=Chris |last=Hamilton |date=4 March 2012 |work=Maui News |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120523212532/http://www.mauinews.com/page/content.detail/id/558769/Survivors-of-nuke-testing-seek-justice.html?nav=10 |archive-date=23 May 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Victims of the Nuclear Age |url=http://www.ratical.org/radiation/NAvictims.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070809213904/http://www.ratical.org/radiation/NAvictims.html |archive-date=9 August 2007 |access-date=22 July 2007 |website=Ratical.org}}</ref>{{better source needed|date=January 2014}} Researchers learned that the coral soil behaved differently from mainland soil because it contains very little potassium. Plants and trees readily absorb potassium as part of the normal biological process, but since caesium is part of the same group on the [[periodic table]], it is absorbed by plants in a very similar chemical process. The islanders who unknowingly consumed contaminated coconut milk were found to have abnormally high concentrations of caesium in their bodies. The Trust Territory decided that the islanders had to be evacuated from the atoll a second time.<ref name="ghostfleet">{{cite web |url=http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Usa/Tests/Castle.html |title=Operation Castle |date=17 May 2006 |work=nuclearweaponarchive.org |access-date=2016-05-20 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927145851/http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Usa/Tests/Castle.html |archive-date=27 September 2013}}</ref>{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}}

The islanders received US$75 million in damages in 1986 as part of a new [[Compact of Free Association]] with the U.S. and in 1988, another $90 million to be used specifically for radiological cleanup. In 1987, a few Bikini elders traveled to Eneu Island to reestablish old property lines. Construction crews began building a hotel, docks, and roads on Bikini, and installed generators, desalinators, and power lines. A packed coral and sand runway still exists on Eneu Island. The Bikini Atoll Divers was established to provide income. But in 1995, the council learned that the US Environmental Protection Agency standard required reducing radiation levels to 15 millirems, substantially less than the US Department of Energy standard of 100 millirems. This discovery significantly increased the potential cost of cleanup and stalled the effort.<ref name=gwynne/>

=== Relocation to Kili Island ===
[[File:Sikorsky SH-3G Sea King of Helicopter Combat Support Squadron 1 in flight over Bikini Atoll in November 1978.jpg|thumb|A SH-3G Sea King overflies the Bikini Atoll in 1979 to check radiation levels]]
As a result of the military use of the island and the failed resettlement, the islands are littered with abandoned concrete bunkers and tons of heavy equipment, vehicles, supplies, machines, and buildings.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.48north.com/jul_2006/bikini.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061105113544/http://www.48north.com/jul_2006/bikini.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=2006-11-05 |title=Cruising Bikini Atoll 60 Years after the bomb |access-date=13 August 2013 |date=July 2006}}</ref> In September 1978, Trust Territory officials finally arrived to relocate the residents. The radiological survey of the northern Marshalls, compelled by the 1975 lawsuit, began only after the residents were removed<ref name=Niedenthal/> and returned to Kili Island.<ref name=Niedenthal/>

{{As of|2013}}, the tiny {{convert|0.36|sqmi|km2}} Kili Island supported about 600 residents who live in [[cinderblock]] houses. They must rely on contributions from a settlement trust fund to supplement what they produce locally. Each family receives one to two boxes of frozen chicken, two to four 51-lb (23 kilogram) bags of flour, and two to four bags of rice 2 to 3 times per year. The islanders operate several small stores out of their homes to supply nonperishable food items like salt, Tabasco, candy, and canned items. A generator provides electricity.

Children attend elementary school on Kili through eighth grade. Toward the end of the eighth grade, students must pass a standardized test to gain admission to attend public high school in [[Jaluit]] or [[Majuro]].

Beginning in 2011 the resettled residents of Kili Island began to experience periods of ocean flooding during [[king tide]]. The highest point of Kili Island is only {{convert|9.8|ft|m}} above sea level. Ocean waves have covered portions of the island at least five times from 2011 to 2015, contaminating the wells on the island. The runway servicing the island is unusable during and after rains and ocean flooding because it becomes extremely muddy. In August 2015, the Bikini Council passed a resolution requesting assistance from US government to modify terms of the Resettlement Trust Fund for the People of Bikini to be used to relocate the population once again, this time outside of the Marshall Islands.<ref name=gwynne/><ref name=gjohnson>{{cite web |title=Exiled by nuclear testing, rising seas force Bikinians to flee again |date=8 August 2015 |first=Giff |last=Johnson |url=http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/280811/rising-seas-force-bikinians-to-flee-again |publisher=RNZI |access-date=28 April 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160427193906/http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/280811/rising-seas-force-bikinians-to-flee-again |archive-date=27 April 2016}}</ref>

The Trust fund had been fairly stable, but after 2017 increased withdrawals drained it down and in the 2020s a crisis erupted to provide services on Kili.<ref name=":0"/>

== Trust funds and failed claims ==
[[File:Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site-115017.jpg|thumb|Bikini Atoll in 2005. Although safe for some modest tourism ventures, serious concerns remain about living there full time and living off the land]]
In 1975, when the islanders who had returned to Bikini Atoll learned that it wasn't safe, they sued the United States for $900 billion in [[USD]], demanding a radiological study of the northern islands.<ref>{{cite web |title=Despite High Court Denial, Battle Over Bikini Atoll Bombing Endures |url=http://bikiniatoll.wordpress.com/2010/04/26/despite-high-court-denial-battle-over-bikini-atoll-bombing-endures/ |publisher=Bikini Island Local Government |access-date=20 August 2013 |date=26 April 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131024061225/http://bikiniatoll.wordpress.com/2010/04/26/despite-high-court-denial-battle-over-bikini-atoll-bombing-endures/ |archive-date=24 October 2013}}</ref>

In 1975, the United States set up ''The Hawaiian Trust Fund for the People of Bikini'', totaling $3 million. When the islanders were removed from the island in 1978, the U.S. added $3 million to the fund. The U.S. created a second trust fund, ''The Resettlement Trust Fund for the People of Bikini'', containing $20 million in 1982. The U.S. added another $90 million to that fund to pay to clean up, reconstruct homes and facilities, and resettle the islanders on Bikini and Eneu islands.<ref name=reparations>{{cite web |title=U.S. Reparations for Damages |url=http://www.bikiniatoll.com/repar.html |publisher=Bikini Atoll |access-date=12 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016002504/http://www.bikiniatoll.com/repar.html |archive-date=16 October 2013}}</ref>

In 1983, the U.S. and the Marshall islanders signed the [[Compact of Free Association]], which gave the Marshall Islands independence. The Compact became effective in 1986 and was subsequently modified by the Amended Compact that became effective in 2004.<ref>{{cite web |title=U.S. Relations With Marshall Island |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/26551.htm |publisher=U.S. Department of State |access-date=14 August 2013 |archive-date=22 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170122194507/https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/26551.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> It also established the [[Nuclear Claims Tribunal]], which was given the task of adjudicating compensation for victims and families affected by the nuclear testing program. Section 177 of the compact provided for reparations to the Bikini islanders and other northern atolls for damages. It included $75 million to be paid over 15 years.<ref name=reparations/>

The payments began in 1987 with $2.4 million paid annually to the entire Bikini population, while the remaining $2.6 million is paid into ''The Bikini Claims Trust Fund''. This trust is intended to exist in perpetuity and to provide the islanders a 5% payment from the trust annually.<ref name=reparations/>

The United States provided $150 million in compensation for damage caused by the nuclear testing program and their displacement from their home island.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nuclearclaimstribunal.com/ |title=Marshall Islands Nuclear Claims Tribunal |access-date=22 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613031306/http://www.nuclearclaimstribunal.com/ |archive-date=13 June 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref>

On 5 March 2001 after years of deliberations, the Nuclear Claims Tribunal ruled against the United States for damages done to the islands and its people. The NCT awarded Bikini $278 million for loss of land use, finding the actions of the U.S. amounted to a "temporary taking" and made its award based on fair rental value for the period of denied use. The NCT made a further award of $251,500,000 for atoll rehabilitation to restore Bikini "to a safe and productive state."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Department Of State. The Office of Electronic Information |first=Bureau of Public Affairs |title=Report Evaluating the Request of the Government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands Presented to the Congress of the United States of America |url=https://2001-2009.state.gov/p/eap/rls/rpt/40422.htm |access-date=2022-06-27 |website=2001-2009.state.gov |language=en |archive-date=27 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627023124/https://2001-2009.state.gov/p/eap/rls/rpt/40422.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

However, the U.S. Congress has failed to fund the settlement. The only recourse is for the Bikini people to petition the U.S. Congress to fund the payment and fulfill this award. The United States Supreme Court turned down the islanders' appeal of the United States Court of Appeals decision that refused to compel the government to fund their claim. By 2001, of the original 167 residents who were relocated, 70 were still alive, and the entire population has grown to 2,800.<ref name="guyer" /> Most of the islanders and their descendants lived on Kili, in Majuro, and in the United States.

''The Hawaiian Trust Fund for the People of Bikini'' was liquidated as required by law in December 2006. The value of ''The Resettlement Trust Fund for the People of Bikini'' as of 31 March 2013 was approximately $82 million and ''The Bikini Claims Trust Fund'' was worth approximately $60 million. In 2006, each member of the trust received about $500 a year.<ref name=reparations/> In 2012, the trusts produced about US$6 to $8 million annually in investment income, and the trusts paid out less than US$15,000 per family each year in benefits, with little money left available for cleanup.<ref name=gwynne/>

Representatives for the Bikini people expect this process to take many years and do not know whether the United States will honor the terms of the Compact of Free Association.<ref name=reparations/>

In 2017, after lobbying by the leaders of Bikini, the Trump administration stated that there would be no limits on withdrawals from the main fund and no further audits of the main fund.  The mayor of the council that is responsible for the Bikini people, Anderson Jibas, used the fund's assets to buy a plane, construction equipment and two cargo ships.  In addition, an apartment complex in Majuro, the capital of the Marshall Islands, and 283 acres of land in Hawaii were purchased. By March 2023, only $100,041 was left in the fund that held $59 million in 2017. The council stopped paying its approximately 350 employees and stopped paying $150 monthly subsistence payments to the 6,800 members of the Bikini community.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McKenzie |first=Pete |date=2023-05-03 |title=$59 Million, Gone: How Bikini Atoll Leaders Blew Through U.S. Trust Fund |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/03/world/asia/bikini-atoll-resettlement-fund.html |access-date=2023-05-03 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=3 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230503234012/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/03/world/asia/bikini-atoll-resettlement-fund.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

By 2023 a state of emergency on Kili was declared, and the Marshallese government had to step in try to remedy the situation.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2024-01-15 |title=Kili Island under state of emergency after fund mismanagement |url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/506733/kili-island-under-state-of-emergency-after-fund-mismanagement |access-date=2024-06-21 |website=[[RNZ]] |language=en-nz}}</ref> Aid helped restore electricity to the island, which had been shut off after the funds were depleted.<ref name=":0" /> Many of the purchases that were made including, real estate, aircraft, and boats have not yielded a return for the Bikini.<ref name="Variety"/>

The depletion of the bikini islander's trust fund made news across the Pacific region, including New Zealand, and in major US newspapers such as the New York Times and Wall Street Journal.<ref name=":0"/><ref>{{Cite news |last=McKenzie |first=Pete |date=2023-05-03 |title=$59 Million, Gone: How Bikini Atoll Leaders Blew Through U.S. Trust Fund |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/03/world/asia/bikini-atoll-resettlement-fund.html |access-date=2024-06-21 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

== World Heritage Site ==

Because the site bears direct tangible evidence of the nuclear tests conducted there amid the paradoxical tropical location, UNESCO determined that the atoll symbolizes the dawn of the nuclear age and named it a [[World Heritage Site]] on 3 August 2010.<ref name=unesco>{{cite web |title=Bikini Atoll, Nuclear Tests Site |url=https://whc.unesco.org/archive/2010/whc10-34com-8Be.pdf |work=Thirty-fourth Session |publisher=World Heritage Committee |access-date=6 June 2012 |date=3 August 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120625140213/https://whc.unesco.org/archive/2010/whc10-34com-8Be.pdf |archive-date=25 June 2012}}</ref><ref name="WHeritage01">{{cite web |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1339 |title=Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site |publisher=UNESCO |access-date=7 August 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100804041652/https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1339 |archive-date=4 August 2010}}</ref>

{{blockquote|Bikini Atoll has conserved direct tangible evidence ... conveying the power of ... 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 [[Atomic Age|nuclear age]], despite its paradoxical image of peace and of earthly paradise.<ref name=unesco/><ref>[https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1339 Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724000329/https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1339/ |date=24 July 2011 }}, unesco.org</ref>}}

== Visitor access ==
{{Location map
 |Pacific Ocean
 |label = Bikini
 |lon_dir = E
 |lat_dir = N
 |lat_deg = 11| lat_min = 36
 |lon_deg = 165| lon_min = 24
 |position = right
 |width = 240
 |float = 120
 |mark = Cercle rouge 100%.svg
 |marksize = 20
 |caption = Location of Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean
}}

Bikini Atoll is open to visitors aboard vessels that are completely self-sufficient if they obtain prior approval. They must also pay for a diver and two local government council representatives to accompany them. The local representation is required to verify that visitors don't remove artifacts from the wrecks in the lagoon.<ref>{{cite web |title=Indies Trader |url=https://hdcc.com/managerletter.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130814004821/https://hdcc.com/managerletter.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 August 2013 |publisher=Bikini Atoll Divers |access-date=13 August 2013}}</ref> Extensive research has been conducted to ensure the safety of visitors to the area and to demonstrate the now low levels of radiation in and around Bikini Atoll.<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Estimates of the Radiological Dose to People Living on Bikini Island for Two Weeks while Diving in and Around the Sunken Ships in Bikini Lagoon |url=https://www.bikiniatoll.com/rad_rpt.pdf |journal=W.L. Robison et al |access-date=13 June 2021 |archive-date=27 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210727232752/https://www.bikiniatoll.com/rad_rpt.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Bikini Lagoon diving ===

In June 1996, the Bikini Council authorized diving operations as a means to generate income for Bikini islanders currently and upon their eventual return. The Bikini Council hired dive guide Edward Maddison who had lived on Bikini Island since 1985 and Fabio Amaral, a Brazilian citizen at the time, as head divemaster and resort manager.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.advanceddivermagazine.com/ezinefreearticles/Bikini.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2017-07-10 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160409090054/http://advanceddivermagazine.com/ezinefreearticles/Bikini.pdf |archive-date=9 April 2016}}  Advanced Diver Magazine 1997</ref> The tours are limited to fewer than a dozen experienced divers a week, cost more than US$5,000, and include detailed histories of the nuclear tests. The operation brought in more than $500,000 during the season from May to October 2001.<ref name=niedenthal2>{{cite news |last=Niedenthal |first=Jack |title=Paradise Lost – 'For the Good of Mankind' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2002/aug/06/travelnews.nuclearindustry.environment |access-date=11 August 2013 |newspaper=The Guardian |date=6 August 2002 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130826145557/http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2002/aug/06/travelnews.nuclearindustry.environment |archive-date=26 August 2013}}</ref>

=== On-shore facilities ===

To accommodate the dive program and anglers, the Bikini Council built new air-conditioned rooms with private bathrooms and showers. They included verandas overlooking the lagoon. There was a dining facility that served American-style meals and Marshallese dishes featuring fresh seafood. Only 12 visitors were hosted at one time.<ref name=kattenburg2/> Because of the lingering contamination, all fruits and vegetables used for the Bikini Atoll dive and sport fishing operation were imported.<ref name=divingworldfacts/> In September 2007, the last of [[Air Marshall Islands]]' commuter aircraft ceased operations when spare parts could not be located and the aircraft were no longer airworthy. A half dozen divers and a journalist were stranded for a week on Bikini Island.<ref name=kattenburg/> The Bikini islanders suspended land-based dive operations beginning in August 2008. {{as of|2021}}, Air Marshall Islands operates one Bombardier DHC-8-100 aircraft and two 19-seat [[Dornier 228]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Johnson |first=Giff |date=July 2013 |title=Air Marshall faces difficult future |publisher=[[Islands Business]] |url=http://www.islandsbusiness.com/2013/7/aviation/air-marshall-faces-difficult-future/ |url-status=dead |access-date=22 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140322141441/http://www.islandsbusiness.com/2013/7/aviation/air-marshall-faces-difficult-future/ |archive-date=22 March 2014}}</ref>

=== Liveaboard diving program ===
[[File:IJN Nagato.jpg|thumb|[[IJN Nagato]] resting at the bottom of Bikini Atoll]]
In October 2010, a live-aboard, self-contained vessel successfully conducted dive operations. In 2011, the local government licensed the liveaboard operator as a provider of dive expeditions on the nuclear ghost fleet on Bikini Atoll. The dive season runs from May through October. Visitors are still able to land on the island for brief stays.<ref name=facts/>

In early 2017, Master Liveaboards announced they would add Bikini Atoll to their list of destinations for technical divers using their vessel Truk Master, with trips to the site commencing in May 2018 having been granted a license by the Bikini Council.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.scubadiving.com/master-liveaboards-adds-bikini-atoll-to-their-list-destinations |title=Master Liveaboards Adds Bikini Atoll to List of Destinations |website=Scuba Diving |language=en |access-date=2019-07-23 |archive-date=9 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309013645/https://www.scubadiving.com/master-liveaboards-adds-bikini-atoll-to-their-list-destinations |url-status=live }}</ref> In May 2021, as a result of ongoing business evaluation and pent up demand created by the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], Master Liveaboards announced they would be adding an additional vessel alongside Truk Master to operate at Bikini Atoll from 2022 onwards.<ref>{{Cite web |title=All change in the Pacific |url=https://masterliveaboards.com/all-change-in-the-pacific/ |access-date=2021-06-13 |website=Master Liveaboards |language=en-US |archive-date=13 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210613033323/https://masterliveaboards.com/all-change-in-the-pacific/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Because the lagoon has remained undisturbed for so long, it contains a larger amount of sea life than usual, including [[shark]]s, which increases divers' interest in the area.<ref name=borrett/> Visibility depth is over {{convert|100|ft}}. The lagoon is immensely popular with divers and is regarded as among the top 10 diving locations in the world.<ref name=kattenburg2/>

Dive visitors receive a history lesson along with the dive experience, including movies and complete briefings about each of the ships, their respective histories, and a tour of the island and the atoll.<ref name=niedenthal2/> Divers are able to visit the [[USS Saratoga (CV-3)]], the second largest of only three aircraft carriers in the world that are accessible to scuba or [[Rebreather|closed circuit rebreather]] divers.<ref name=niedenthal2/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Local Tips for Scuba Diving the Oriskany Shipwreck in Pensacola, Florida |url=https://www.scubadiving.com/local-tips-for-scuba-diving-oriskany-shipwreck-in-pensacola-florida |access-date=2021-06-13 |website=Scuba Diving |language=en |archive-date=12 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112035838/https://www.scubadiving.com/local-tips-for-scuba-diving-oriskany-shipwreck-in-pensacola-florida |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Sportfishing ===

Bikini Island authorities opened sport fishing to visitors along with diving. Although the atomic blasts obliterated three islands and contaminated much of the atoll, after 50 years the coral reefs have largely recovered. The reefs attract reef fish and their predators: {{convert|30|lb|kg|abbr=on|adj=on}} [[dogtooth tuna]], {{convert|20|lb|kg|abbr=on|adj=on}} [[barracuda]], and [[giant trevally]] as big as {{convert|50|lb}}. Given the long-term absence of humans, the Bikini lagoon offers sportsmen one of the most pristine fishing environments in the world.<ref name=gwynne/>[[File:Bikiniatoll.jpg|thumb|Bikini Atoll Shipwrecks Map|left|344x344px]]

=== Shipwrecks ===
[[File:USS Saratoga CV3.jpg|thumb|143x143px|USS Saratoga bow end flight deck]]Shipwrecks in the lagoon include the following:<ref>{{cite web |url=https://stuff.insureandgo.com/explore-bikini-atoll/ |title=Explore Bikini Atoll |website=stuff.insureandgo.com |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171119203611/https://stuff.insureandgo.com/explore-bikini-atoll/ |archive-date=19 November 2017}}</ref>
*{{USS|Saratoga|CV-3}} – aircraft carrier
*{{USS|Arkansas|BB-33}} – battleship
*{{USS|Gilliam|APA-57}} – attack transport
*{{USS|Carlisle|APA-69}} – attack transport
*{{USS|Lamson|DD-367}} – destroyer
*{{USS|Anderson|DD-411}} – destroyer
*{{USS|Apogon|SS-308}} – submarine
*{{USS|Pilotfish|SS-386}} – submarine
*{{ship|Japanese battleship|Nagato}} – battleship
*{{ship|Japanese cruiser|Sakawa}} – light cruiser

== 21st century habitable condition ==
Due to the nuclear weapon testing, the island was subjected to environmental testing in 1998 by the [[International Atomic Energy Agency]]. To validate previous surveys data collected, the agency tested air absorption rates and soil and food radionuclide concentrations.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Stegnar |first=Peter |date=1998 |title=Assessing Radiological Conditions at Bikini Atoll and the Prospects for Resettlement Review of Bikini Atoll |url=https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/publications/magazines/bulletin/bull40-4/40405081517.pdf |website=iaea |access-date=25 April 2023 |archive-date=6 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221006004109/https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/publications/magazines/bulletin/bull40-4/40405081517.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1998, an IAEA advisory group, formed in response to a request by the Government of the Marshall Islands for an independent international review of the radiological conditions on Bikini Atoll, recommended that Bikini Island should not be permanently resettled considering its radiological conditions.<ref>{{cite web |title=Conditions at Bikini Atoll |url=http://www-ns.iaea.org/appraisals/bikini-atoll.asp |publisher=International Atomic Energy Agency |access-date=12 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801190516/http://www-ns.iaea.org/appraisals/bikini-atoll.asp |archive-date=1 August 2013}}</ref>

The potential to make the island habitable has substantially improved since then. A 2012 assessment from [[Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory]] found that [[cesium-137]] levels were dropping considerably faster than expected. Terry Hamilton, scientific director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's Marshall Islands Dose Assessment and Radioecology Program, reported that "Conditions have really changed on Bikini. They are improving at an accelerated rate. By using the combined option of removing soil and adding potassium, we can get very close to the 15 millirem standard. That has been true for roughly the past 10 years. So now is the time when the Bikinians, if they desired, could go back."<ref name=gwynne/>

{{As of|2013}}, about 4,880 descendants of the original Bikini people live on Kili and other Marshall Islands and some have immigrated to the United States. Bikini Island is currently visited by a few scientists and inhabited by 4–6 caretakers.<ref name=borrett>{{cite web |last=Borrett |first=Lloyd |title=Diving the Nuclear Ghost Fleet at Bikini Atoll |url=http://bikiniatoll.wordpress.com/2010/04/26/despite-high-court-denial-battle-over-bikini-atoll-bombing-endures/ |access-date=20 August 2013 |date=March 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131024061225/http://bikiniatoll.wordpress.com/2010/04/26/despite-high-court-denial-battle-over-bikini-atoll-bombing-endures/ |archive-date=24 October 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.diveadventures.com.au/pages/destinations/Micronesia/bikini_lagoon.htm |title=Scuba Diving in Bikini Lagoon |publisher=diveadventures.com.au |access-date=30 October 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091012151645/http://www.diveadventures.com.au/pages/destinations/Micronesia/bikini_lagoon.htm |archive-date=12 October 2009}}</ref>

The islanders want the topsoil removed, but lack the necessary funding. The opportunity for some Bikini islanders to potentially relocate back to their home island creates a dilemma. While the island may be habitable in the near term, virtually none of the islanders alive have ever lived there. {{As of|2013}}, unemployment in the Marshall Islands was at about 40 percent. The population is growing at a four-percent growth rate, so increasing numbers are taking advantage of terms in the Marshall Islands' Compact of Free Association that allow them to live in and work in the United States.<ref name=gwynne/>

After the islanders were relocated in 1946, while the Bikini islanders were experiencing starvation on Rongerik Atoll, Lore Kessibuki wrote an anthem for the island:<ref name=gwynne/>

: ''No longer can I stay, it's true''
: ''No longer can I live in peace and harmony''
: ''No longer can I rest on my sleeping mat and pillow''
: ''Because of my island and the life I once knew there''
: ''The thought is overwhelming''
: ''Rendering me helpless and in great despair.''

== In popular culture ==

=== Cinema ===
*The documentary ''Bikini – mon amour'' by [[Oliver Herbrich]] shows the effects of long-term low-level radiation on the population.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://oliver-herbrich.wixsite.com/archiv/bikini-mon-amour |title=Oliver Herbrich Filmarchive / BIKINI – MON AMOUR |website=archiv |access-date=13 May 2021 |archive-date=13 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513101524/https://oliver-herbrich.wixsite.com/archiv/bikini-mon-amour |url-status=live }}</ref>
*The 1962 Italian mondo documentary film ''[[Mondo Cane]]'' shows the effects of long-term low-level radiation on the wildlife.
*The [[Nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll|nuclear tests]] at Bikini, along with the [[Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki|Hiroshima & Nagasaki bombings]], inspired the 1954 Japanese movie ''[[Godzilla (1954 film)|Godzilla]]''.

=== Television shows ===
The [[Nickelodeon]] animated series ''[[SpongeBob SquarePants]]'' primarily takes place in [[SpongeBob SquarePants#Setting|Bikini Bottom]], which is supposedly situated underneath the atoll<ref>{{cite web |title=The Hype Soaking It Up 'Spongebob' Actor Loves the Attention |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-83498648.html |work=Daily News |access-date=30 October 2013 |date=8 March 2001 |location=Los Angeles, CA |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106075350/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-83498648.html |archive-date=6 November 2013|via=HighBeam}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.qsrmagazine.com/articles/news/story.phtml?id=3354 |title=Burger King SpongeBob SquarePants |access-date=19 August 2010 |work=QSR Magazine |date=7 June 2001 |author=QSR Staff |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071021075539/http://www.qsrmagazine.com/articles/news/story.phtml?id=3354 |archive-date=21 October 2007}}</ref> named after Bikini Atoll.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bradley |first=Bill |date=10 February 2015 |title=SpongeBob SquarePants Answers 7 Big Questions And Debunks 1 Popular Theory |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/07/spongebob-squarepants-theory_n_6627556.html |work=The Huffington Post |access-date=10 July 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160614173916/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/07/spongebob-squarepants-theory_n_6627556.html |archive-date=14 June 2016}}</ref>

During a 2015 interview with [[Tom Kenny]], the voice actor for [[SpongeBob SquarePants (character)|SpongeBob]], he was asked about the popular theory that SpongeBob is the result of nuclear testing. He replied, {{blockquote|Well, Bikini Bottom is kind of named after Bikini Atoll, you know, where they did nuclear testing decades ago. So... nah, that one. I don't think SpongeBob and his friends are mutations.<ref name="huffingtonpost-tomkenny-mutation-nope">{{Cite web |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/07/spongebob-squarepants-theory_n_6627556.html |title=SpongeBob SquarePants Debunks One Popular Fan Theory |first=Bill |last=Bradley |date=7 February 2015 |website=HuffPost |access-date=13 May 2021 |archive-date=7 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170907053320/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/07/spongebob-squarepants-theory_n_6627556.html |url-status=live }}</ref>}}

In 2024, [[Rodger Bumpass]] (voice actor for [[Squidward Tentacles|Squidward]]) said he also believed the theory was false, but [[Mr. Lawrence]] (voice actor for [[Plankton and Karen|Plankton]]) said the theory was "absolutely true":{{blockquote|That was part of the fun of it, was, how far are we taking that concept? I mean, right at the beginning, when we were sort of developing it in the first season, it was like, 'are we gonna play off of this apocalyptic thing?' Like, 'the whole world is dead except for Bikini Bottom. ... the world upstairs is gone, and this is what's left.'<ref>{{cite AV media |people=[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]] |date=27 November 2024 |title=SpongeBob Cast Reunites To Talk 25 Years of Krabby Patties and F-U-N |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hlE75E4Yz8 |publisher=[[YouTube]] |access-date=14 January 2025}}</ref>}}

=== Swimsuit design ===
{{main|Bikini}}

[[File:Choris 1822 gri 33125010887327 0326.jpg|thumb|[[Marshall Islands]] woman wears a traditional ''nieded'' or [[Ta'ovala|clothing mat]]. Ironically, the Marshallese women were socially comfortable exhibiting bare breasts, in contrast to many Western countries where the bikini's covering of nipples was a key to modesty.]]
On 5 July 1946, four days after the first nuclear device (nicknamed ''Able'') was detonated over Bikini Atoll during [[Operation Crossroads]],<ref>{{cite book |last=Campbell |first=Richard H. |year=2005 |title=The Silverplate Bombers: A History and Registry of the Enola Gay and Other B-29s Configured to Carry Atomic Bombs |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |publisher=McFarland & Company |isbn=0-7864-2139-8 |oclc=58554961 |pages=18, 186–189}}</ref> [[Louis Réard]] introduced a new swimsuit design named the ''bikini'' after the atoll. Réard was a French mechanical engineer by training and manager of his mother's lingerie shop in Paris. He introduced the new garment to the media and public on 5 July 1946 at [[Piscine Molitor]], a public pool in Paris.<ref name="Gold2009">{{cite book |author=David Louis Gold |title=Studies in Etymology and Etiology: With Emphasis on Germanic, Jewish, Romance and Slavic Languages |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=l015C5vm1XkC&pg=PA99 |year=2009 |publisher=Universidad de Alicante |isbn=978-84-7908-517-9 |pages=99– |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130528015803/http://books.google.com/books?id=l015C5vm1XkC&pg=PA99 |archive-date=28 May 2013}}</ref><ref name="BBCW">{{cite news |first=Kathryn |last=Westcott |title=The Bikini: Not a brief affair |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/5130460.stm |work=BBC News |date=5 June 2006 |access-date=17 September 2008 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080721185042/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/5130460.stm |archive-date=21 July 2008}}</ref><ref name=HistC>[http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history.do?action=VideoArticle&id=6949 Bikini Introduced] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090419083213/http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history.do?action=VideoArticle&id=6949 |date=19 April 2009 }}, This Day in History, ''[[History (U.S. TV channel)|History Channel]]''</ref>

He hired [[Micheline Bernardini]], an 18-year-old [[Striptease|nude dancer]] from the [[Casino de Paris]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bikiniscience.com/chronology/1945-1950_SS/LR4601_S/LR4601.html |title=Michele Bernadini: The First Bikini |first=Judson |last=Rosebush |work=Bikini Science |access-date=19 September 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927084552/http://www.bikiniscience.com/chronology/1945-1950_SS/LR4601_S/LR4601.html |archive-date=27 September 2007}}</ref> to demonstrate his design. It featured [[Bikini variants#String bikini|string briefs]] of {{convert|30|sqin|cm2|-2}} of cloth with newspaper-type print and was an immediate sensation. Bernardini received 50,000 fan letters, many of them from men.<ref name=HistC/><ref name=heritage>{{cite web |url=http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/web/20060705-bikini-swimming-suit-louis-reard-micheline-bernardini-paris-brigitte-bardot.shtml |access-date=13 November 2007 |publisher=American Heritage Inc. |title=60 Years of Bikinis |author=Hoover, Elizabeth D. |date=5 July 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070909195749/http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/web/20060705-bikini-swimming-suit-louis-reard-micheline-bernardini-paris-brigitte-bardot.shtml |archive-date=9 September 2007}}</ref> Réard hoped that his swimsuit's revealing style would create an "explosive commercial and cultural reaction" similar in intensity to the social reaction to 1946 nuclear explosion on Bikini Atoll.<ref>{{cite news |title=The History of the Bikini |url=http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1908353_1905440,00.html |publisher=Time |access-date=20 August 2013 |date=3 July 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130825181922/http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1908353_1905440,00.html |archive-date=25 August 2013}}</ref><ref name="RandHist">{{cite web |url=http://www.randomhistory.com/1-50/002bikini.html |title=Tiny Swimsuit That Rocked the World: A History of the Bikini |publisher=Randomhistory.com |date=1 May 2007 |access-date=3 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120808002739/http://www.randomhistory.com/1-50/002bikini.html |archive-date=8 August 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="LalFortune2000">{{cite book |author1=Brij V. Lal |author2=Kate Fortune |title=The Pacific Islands: an Encyclopedia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T5pPpJl8E5wC&pg=PA259 |year=2000 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |isbn=978-0-8248-2265-1 |page=259 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130528013859/http://books.google.com/books?id=T5pPpJl8E5wC&pg=PA259 |archive-date=28 May 2013}}</ref><ref name="Foster2007">{{cite book |first=Ruth |last=Foster |title=Nonfiction Reading Comprehension: Social Studies, Grade 5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5bWfeLfg_FoC&pg=PA130 |date=June 2007 |publisher=Teacher Created Resources |isbn=978-1-4206-8030-0 |page=130 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130528024315/http://books.google.com/books?id=5bWfeLfg_FoC&pg=PA130 |archive-date=28 May 2013}}</ref> Fashion writer [[Diana Vreeland]] described the bikini as the "atom bomb of fashion".<ref name="The Very First Bikini">Judson Rosebush, {{cite web |url=http://www.bikiniscience.com//chronology/1945-1950_SS/1945-1950.html |title=1945–1950: The Very First Bikini |work=Bikini Science |access-date=25 November 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120627214541/http://bikiniscience.com/chronology/1945-1950_SS/1945-1950.html |archive-date=27 June 2012}}</ref>

Because the bikini exposes a woman's thighs, it violates the Marshall Islanders' modern [[norm (social)|customs]] of [[modesty]], whereas cultural taboos regarding women's breasts are less strict on the islands.<ref name=customs/><ref name=encyclopedia/><ref name=briand/> Marshall Island women swim in their [[muumuu]]s, which are made of a fine polyester that dries quickly.<ref name=encyclopedia/> Wearing a bikini in the Marshall Islands is mainly limited to restricted-access beaches and pools like those at private resorts or on United States government facilities on [[Kwajalein Atoll]] within the [[Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.safaritheglobe.com/marshall-islands/ |title=Marshallese Culture |publisher=Safaritheglobe.com |access-date=18 July 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150217201933/http://www.safaritheglobe.com/culture_marshall_islands.aspx |archive-date=17 February 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Marshall_Islands.aspx |title=Marshall Islands Facts, information, pictures |publisher=Encyclopedia.com |access-date=18 July 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218011640/http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Marshall_Islands.aspx |archive-date=18 December 2012}}</ref>

== Gallery ==

<gallery>
File:Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site-115009.jpg|American bunker located in the island
File:Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site-115011.jpg|Rear of bunker
File:Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site-115013.jpg|The island seen from above
File:Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site-115015.jpg|Entrance sign to the island
File:Bikini Atoll Nuclear Test Site-115017.jpg|View of the coast from above
</gallery>

== See also ==

*[[Operation Castle]]
*[[Operation Ivy]]
*[[Radio Bikini]]
*[[Wōdejebato]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist-la}}

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

=== Bibliography ===

*Niedenthal, Jack, ''For the Good of Mankind: A History of the People of Bikini and their Islands'', Bravo Publishers, (November 2002), {{ISBN|982-9050-02-5}}
*Wiesgall, Jonathan M, ''Operation Crossroads: Atomic Tests at Bikini Atoll'', Naval Institute Press (21 April 1994), {{ISBN|1-55750-919-0}}
*Stegnar, Peter, ''Assessing Radiological Conditions at Bikini Atoll and the Prospects for Resettlement Review at Bikini Atoll,'' IAEA'','' (1998)
*{{cite journal|pmid=20622548 |date=2010 |last1=Beck |first1=H. L. |last2=Bouville |first2=A. |last3=Moroz |first3=B. E. |last4=Simon |first4=S. L. |title=Fallout deposition in the Marshall Islands from Bikini and Enewetak nuclear weapons tests |journal=Health Physics |volume=99 |issue=2 |pages=124–142 |doi=10.1097/HP.0b013e3181bbbfbd |pmc=2904645 |bibcode=2010HeaPh..99..124B }}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Bikini Atoll}}

*[http://www.bikiniatoll.com/ A Short History of the People of Bikini Atoll]
*[http://www.bikiniatoll.com/whatrad.html What About Radiation on Bikini Atoll?]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20041016102831/http://www.eh.doe.gov/health/marshall/marshall.htm Department of Energy Marshall Islands Program]: Chronology of nuclear testing, relocation of islanders and results of radiation tests
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060721230143/http://alsos.wlu.edu/qsearch.aspx?browse=places%2FBikini Annotated bibliography for Bikini Atoll from the Alsos Digital Library for Nuclear Issues]
*[http://japanfocus.org/-Yoichi-Funabashi/1576 Islanders Want The Truth About Bikini Nuclear Test]
*[http://marshall.csu.edu.au/Marshalls/html/atolls/bikini.html Marshall Islands site]
*{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223043232/http://www.oceandots.com/pacific/marshall/bikini.php |date=23 December 2010 |title=Entry at Oceandots.com }}
*[http://www.yokwe.net/ Everything Marshall Islands] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170520075855/http://www.yokwe.net/ |date=20 May 2017 }}
*[http://content.lib.washington.edu/donaldsonweb/index.html Lauren R. Donaldson Collection], served as a radiation monitor for Operation Crossroads; the codename for the first atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll. – University of Washington Digital Collection
*[https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/swcrc/37/chap1.htm The Archeology of the Atomic Bomb] ''A Submerged Cultural Resources Assessment of the Sunken Fleet of Operation Crossroads at Bikini and Kwajalein Atoll Lagoons'' U.S. National Park Service
*[https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/03/world/asia/bikini-atoll-resettlement-fund.html $59 Million, Gone: How Bikini Atoll Leaders Blew Through U.S. Trust Fund]
{{Marshall Islands}}
{{US nuclear tests}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Bikini Atoll| ]]
[[Category:Atolls of the Marshall Islands]]
[[Category:Ralik Chain]]
[[Category:World Heritage Sites in the Marshall Islands]]
[[Category:American nuclear test sites]]
[[Category:Nuclear test sites]]