An assessment of the then unknown effects of atomic weaponry upon a naval fleet was a high postwar priority, resulting in the formation of a Joint Task Force to plan and execute atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll in the summer of 1946. Known as Operation Crossroads, these tests were to be conducted on a large array of unmanned target ships to determine the effects of atomic explosions on a variety of vessel types.
An evaluation of the previously unknown impacts of atomic weapons on a naval fleet became a top postwar priority, leading to the establishment of a Joint Task Force to organize and carry out atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll in the summer of 1946. Known as Operation Crossroads, these trials were intended to assess the effects of atomic explosions on various types of ships.