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 * 25.3 million Curies were released from 30 NTS underground tests between 1957 and 1970.
** From all global testing - 423 atmospheric tests (1945-1957) and about 1400 underground tests (1957-1989)- the total Curies from all radionuclides released is estimated at 16–18 million curies of strontium-90, 25–29 million curies of cesium-137, 10 million curies of Carbon-14, and 400,000 curies of plutonium-239
*** For all radioactive fission products released, not just I-131; 99% of the Curies of Iodine-131 released from NTS tests (1951-1992) occurred in 1952, 1953, 1955, and 1957

⁺Chernoybl released 2.7 million Ci of Cs137, 216,000 Ci of Sr90, and 83 million Ci of I131 (or 7.3 million Ci at 10 days post-accident); from new book published in 2010: 'Yablokov and his co-authors find that radioactive emissions from the stricken reactor, once believed to be 50 million curies, may have been as great as 10 billion curies, or 200 times greater than the initial estimate, and hundreds of times larger than the fallout from the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.' source

Note: numbers subject to change  

Conversions:

1 Becquerel (Bq) = 27 picocuries (pCi)

1 picocurie (pCi) = 0.037 Bq

Idealist hosts a growing collection of graphs and maps from "Radiological Health Data and Reports" for the years 1961 to 1965 that were captured over several afternoons  using a digital (Nikon Coolpix L4) camera.  The collection of graphs and maps below is, at the present time, incomplete and without citations and, on account of the 'low tech scanning device' (camera) and the rigid nature of the publication binding, the below maps often have significant blurriness and under/over-exposure.  Please help Idealist improve this digital collection with a financial donation to help us (with library parking fees) re-shoot many photos and expand the collection, or a contribution of a new or used handheld portable scanner for a complete re-do.   

When looking at these maps, graphs and charts, consider that before 1945 there were zero-levels of Strontium-90, Cesium-137 and Iodine-131 in our environment.   All, and dozens of more manmade radionuclides, were injected into our environment from nuclear testing and weapons development, and later nuclear power generation.    

Air - The federal standard for Iodine-131 in air is 100 pCi/m3

Beta-activity of air-borne particulates for select cities in the U.S., 1956-1960 : Anchorage and Fairbanks, AK (1956-1960); Little Rock, AR, Berkeley, CA (1956-1960); Juneau, AK, Phoenix, AZ (1956-1960); Hartford, CT, Washington, DC (1956-1960); Springfield, IL, Indianopolis, IN (1956-1960); Iowa City, IA, Topeka, KN (1956-1960); Minneapolis, MN, Pascagoula, MS (1956-1960); Jefferson City, MO, Helena, MT (1956-1960); Trenton, NJ, Santa Fe, NM (1956-1960); Portland, OR, Harrisburg, PA (1956-1960); Pierre, SD, Austin, TX (1956-1960); El Paso, TX, Salt Lake City, UT (1956-1960); Richmond, VA, Seattle, WA (1956-1960); Cheyenne, WY (1956-1960); Albany NY, Gastonia, NC (1956-1960), various cities 1960-1966 (2) (3), various cities 1961-1967, 

Surface air gross beta in 30th through 45th latitudes (c.1957-c.1960)

Iso-concentration contours of fission product gross beta in U.S. surface air, week of Sept. 20, 1961; November 1962

National average fission product beta concentrations in air, March 1962

Relative abundance of airborne radionuclide activity, 1963, 1964

Airborne gross beta concentration contours for Canada and U.S., Jan. 1963, Feb. 1963, March 1963, April  1963, May 1963, June 1963, August 1963, September 1963, October 1963, November 1963, December 1963, January 1964, March 1964, April 1964, May 1964, June 1964, July 1964, August 1964

Plutonium-239 levels in surface air in New York (1954-1973) (Source: 1974 Proceedings of public hearings: Plutonium??)

Plutonium-239 in ground air, 1965-1969

Strontium-90 in ground air, 1965-1969

Beta levels in air around Savannah River Plant 1961-1966

Water - 

Total beta activity in U.S. surface waters: August 1963, September 1963, October 1963, November 1963, December 1963, January 1964, February 1964, March 1964, April 1964, May 1964, June 1964, July 1964

Max. and Min. Sr-90 in surface waters of major river basins, July-September 1963

Re: Drinking Water: The current maximum content level (MCL) for beta-emitters, like Strontium-90, is 4 millirem per year or 8 picoCuries (pCi) per liter of water.  What that means is that drinking water exceeding 8 pCi/L triggers an 'action level.'   

For drinking water, the average concentration of iodine-131 which is assumed to yield 4 milliRem per year is 3 picocuries per liter (3 pCi/l) and the average concentration of Cesium-137 which is assumed to yield 4 milliRem per year is 200 picocuries per liter (200 pCi/L)

Strontium-90 in tap water (NYC, and Richmond, CA), 1958-1962, 1955-1963, 1958-1963, 1955-1964

Sr-90 in NYC tap water 1955-66 (2)

Food - 

Strontium-90 in U.S. Wheat Harvested in 1959 and 1960

Production weighted average Sr-90 in Canadian wheat, 1957-1962

Strontium-90 in 1959 Wheat and Milling Products

Strontium-90 content of 5 selected crops, 1962-63

Average Sr90 levels in foodstuffs, 1962-64

Dairy intake of Strontium-90 in Tri-City Total Diets (NYC, Chicago, San Fran.; 1960-63?), 1960-64, 1960-65, 1960-63, 1960-1966

Sr90 monthly avg. intake in sampling network (1961-1965), same for Cs137 intake

Radionuclides in institutional diet samples (average in network), 1961-63, 1961-64 (2)

Sr-90 in foodstuffs, 1962-63; PART 2; in breakfast foods in late 1963; in foodstuffs from July '62 to Oct. '63

Cesium-137 in foods, 1962; PART 2

Radionuclide intake in CT standard diet; Cs-137 in CT diet, 1963-66; same but for Sr-90

Daily intake of 90Sr in 3-cities diets, 1960-66

Soil

Seasonal Latitudinal Curves of Strontium-90 Deposition (1960) 

Strontium-90 in soil in Canada and U.S., 1960-63; 1960 and 1963; 1960, 1963

Deposition density of Sr-90 in U.S.: 1960 1961 1962 1963  How deposition was calculated

3-d deposition plotted against milk concentration contours: 1961 1962 1963

Milk   - for our own dose analysis/fatality estimates of Americans' exposure to radiation (Sr-90 fallout) in milk, visit here

Strontium-90 in 1960-1962 pasteurized milk in several cities; same for 1961 to February 1964; 1961 to Dec. 1963, January 1964; 1961-63, (2) (3), 1961-Jan. 1965, 1961-Apr 1964, 1961-May 1964, 1961-June 1964, thru July 1964, thru Aug. 1964, thru Sept. 1964, thru Oct. 1964, thru Nov. 1964, thru Dec. 1964, thru Feb. 1965, thru April 1965, thru Oct. 1966, thru Nov. 1966,  thru Dec. 1966,  through February 1967, through Jan. 1967 (2), thru April 1967, 

Learn more about Strontium-90 health effects here, and bioaccumulation of fallout in milk here

Strontium-90 in milk concentration contours, 1961 and early 1962, Average 1960, Annual average for 1961 (2), mid 1962, average 1962, Jan 1963, Feb 1963, April 1963, May 1963, June 1963, August 1963, September 1963, October 1963, November 1963, December 1963, average 1963, January 1964, February 1964, March 1964, April 1964, May 1964, June 1964, July 1964, August 1964, Sept. 1964, Oct. 1964, Nov. 1964, Dec. 1964, 1964 annual average, January 1965, Feb. 1965, March 1965, April 1965; 

Sr-90 in pasteurized milk, month averages and ranges, 1964; 1960-1965

Some dupes here, sorry: Strontium-90 in liquid/powdered in Mandan, ND, Honolulu, and NYC, 1959-1962; Sr-90 in Mandan powdered milk; Sr-90 in Mandan and Perry, NY powdered milk 1960-63 (2) (3) 1960-64; 1960-65; Sr-90 in liquid milk in NYC and Honolulu, 1960-63 (2) (3), 1960-64; 1960-1965

New Yorker's radiation dose from drinking Sr-90 contaminated milk 1960 to 1965

Strontium-89 in milk concentrations for Jan 1963, Sr-89 for April 1963, Sr-89 for July 1963, Sr-89 for August 1963, September 1963, October 1963, November 1963, December 1963, January 1964, 

The case for Iodine-131 is even worse.  For every pCi of I-131 in a liter of milk, you get roughly 0.008 millirems. (NRC NUREG 1.109 rev. 1 Oct. '77 gives 0.0139 milliRems thryoid dose per pCi of I-131 for infants; and 0.00195 mRem for adults). Multiply estimated daily dose by 365 to get annual I-131 dose.   (E.g. drinking 100 pCi/L 1-131 contaminated milk equates with a child's annual dose of 0.5 Rems.) In the early 1960s, Harold Knapp of the Atomic Energy Commission calculated the fallout from a 1953 nuclear test in Nevada named 'Shot Harry,' aka 'Dirty Harry,' exposed children in the downwind city of St. George, Utah to perhaps the highest radiation from Nevada testing in history. He estimated that children drinking a liter of milk per day for three weeks received thyroid exposures of 120 to 440 rads from milk contaminated by 0.7 to 2.6 million picoCuries per liter.   

Iodine-131 in milk concentration contours, 1961 and early 1962, Annual average for 1961, July 1962, Annual average for 1962, Jan. 1963, Avg max and min (1961-65)

Iodine-131 and Strontium-90 concentration contours, August 1962

Iodine-131 and Strontium-89 in milk concentration contours, October 1962

I-131 in U.S. milk May 22 to 25, 1966 (China test fallout), 'intrusion' pattern week of May 13, 1966 (gross beta in air in nanoCuries per sq. meter - divide by 1,000 to get pCi/m2)

Iodine-131 in air, milk and vegetables (lettuce) associated with July 1962 fallout graph, intro; precipitation in Salt Lake City; fallout cloud paths; hypothesis graph, fission product activity on 7/7/62 (measurements of milk as high as 2,000 pCi/L i-131) 

Harold Knapp of the Atomic Energy Commission once calculated that fallout from the Small Boy event rose contamination in milk supplies in a 20 square mile area around Fruitland, Utah to 400,000 picoCuries of Iodine 131 per liter; and that milk from farms near Altonah, Utah, rose to 100,000 pCi/L.

Cesium-137 in milk concentration contours for 1963, Cesium-137 in pasteurized milk: September 1963, October 1963, November 1963, December 1963, January 1964, February 1964, March 1964, April 1964, May 1964, June 1964, July 1964, August 1964, Sept. 1964, Oct. 1964, Nov. 1964, Dec. 1964,  1964 annual average, January 1965 (2), Feb. 1965, March 1965, April 1965,

Cesium-137 in milk concentration contours for 2nd half of 1961 and 1962

Average 'Network' Canadian Sr-90, Sr-89, and Cs-137 concentrations in whole milk, 1963; same; Sr-90 and Cs-137 in Canadian whole milk, 1963 (2) 1963-1964;  I-131 and Sr-89 in Canadian whole milk, 1962-63 (2)

Yearly average concentrations of Cesium-137 in milk for U.S. cities 1956-1963, Avg max and min in milk network (1960-65)

Cs-137 concentrations in milk; and rainfall in 1963; Cs-137 and I-131 in NY milk July 1961-Sept. 1964; Monthly average Strontium-90 in California milk, 1962-63; Radionuclides in Connecticut Milk, 1962-64, 1962-65; Radionuclides in Colorado milk 1962-64 (2); Highest I-131 concentrations in milk samples downwind of 'Bandicoot,' 1962; I-131 in milk at farms downwind of 'Pike'; Strontium-90 in California milk, 1962-63

Concentrations of Short Half-Life Radionuclides in Raw Milk (NY, Sacremento, ?), 1957-1959

Radionuclide conc. in NY State milk 1961-66; CA milk

Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Michigan milk (1963-1967), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Indiana milk (1963-1967), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Texas milk (1963-1967), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Oregon milk (1962-1966) (bigger), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Washington milk (1962-1966) (bigger version),  Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in California milk (1960-1966) (better), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Pennsylvania milk (1962-1966) (bigger), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Michigan milk (1962-1966) (Mich. cities), Avg. daily ranges of sr-90 and cs-137 intake in Calif. diets (1964-66), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Minnesota milk (1961-1966) (Minn. cities), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in New York milk (1961-1966) (cities), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Central Connecticut milk (1962-1966) (1963-67), Sr90 and Cs137 concentrations in Iowa milk (1965-67)

Other

Estimated plutonium-238 in ground air from SNAP-9A reentry, 1966-69

Fallout trajectories from 1965 NTS nuclear rocket tests; dose and effluent data (2)

Approx. path of fallout debris from first Chinese nuclear test in 1964, 24-hour precipitation in U.S. for Oct. 27, 1964 

Radioactive levels in U.S. following 1966 Chinese nuclear test

'Early' fallout map - 'Estimated Radiation Doses (Roentgens) from all nuclear tests'

Compilation of PHS maps superimposed on a map of United States - click here (zoom-in to your birthplace, hometown or major city to view fallout data). 

Underground Era Test Series, September 1961 - December 1970

Plume/fallout/dose maps for other nuclear tests

Trinity fallout estimated trajectory; read more in draft LAHDRA Project report (pdf, 9.1 megabytes)

Greater New York City area nuclear power plants & prevailing winds; more; original map

Conclusion: Both the good and shoddy data from the 1950s and 1960s cannot adequately reconstruct the 'what where, and when' of radioactive fallout during the Cold War in the U.S. through the end of atmospheric testing in 1963.   No one knows with any accuracy what concentrations of radionuclides fell, where the fallout fell, and when towns and cities got irradiated.  Worse, no one knows what the fallout did to, and what lingering fallout is doing to, Americans' health.  Some of the worst health-damaging fallout-elements are still in our food supplies and haven't fully decayed.   A nationwide soil sampling study is the only recourse  - more.

KEY of UNITS:

m = milli, or thousandth

µ = micro, or millionth

n = nano, or billionth

p, or µµ = pico, or trillionth

Ci = Curies 

pCi= picoCuries, or trillionth of a Curie

1 bq = 27.03 pCi  (more conversions)

Up to 1987, the total expected  annual dose from natural and manmade doses was 170 milliRems.

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