Tourists look at photographs of the first nuclear bomb test at the Trinity Site where the bomb was tested at 5:29:45 a.m. Mountain War Time on July 16, 1945 on the White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, April 1, 2000. The 19 kiloton explosion not only led to a quick end to the war in the Pacific but also ushered the world into the atomic age. Photo Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Society The WorldWorld Marks Longest-Ever Pause in Nuclear Test Explosions
The planet has reached a historic milestone with more than eight years passing without a single nuclear test, the longest lull since the atomic age began in 1945.
“From now on, every day without a nuclear explosion sets a new record,” said Dylan Spaulding, senior scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists.
The last nuclear test was conducted by North Korea in September 2017, meaning the world has now surpassed the previous record lull of eight years set between 1998 and 2006. Since 1945, eight nations have carried out 2,055 nuclear tests, but widespread testing largely stopped in the late 1990s, with most countries adhering to a global norm against explosions, showing how restraint has become the default even amid geopolitical tensions.
