US nuclear gas experiment produced 213m cubic feet, but gas was radioactive
Project Gasbuggy was a 1967 US government experiment that used a nuclear explosion to stimulate natural gas flow in New Mexico. The project ultimately failed to produce clean gas, as the resulting fuel was radioactive.
Why it matters
It serves as a historical case study on the risks and failures of the Cold War-era 'Plowshare Program' regarding peaceful nuclear applications.
In 1967, the United States tried an unusual method to increase natural gas production. It detonated a 29-kiloton device and had an explosoion 4,227 feet below the ground in north-western New Mexico to stimulate the flow of natural gas.According to the US Department of Energy (DOE), the test, known as Project Gasbuggy, was carried out on December 10, 1967, at a site in Rio Arriba County. The location is about 55 miles east of Farmington and 12 miles south-west of Dulce, in the Carson National Forest. The site covers 640 acres.The nuclear device was placed in an emplacement well called GB-E. The aim was to use the blast to fracture the rock around a gas-bearing formation and create pathways through which natural gas could flow more easily.The test was part of the Plowshare Program, which was designed to explore peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
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