Sources have informed the newspaper that even a symbolic detonation would necessitate considerable time, funds, and specialized knowledge.
Resuming nuclear tests in the US would take several years and cost hundreds of millions of dollars, the Washington Post reported on Thursday, citing experts. The Nevada Test Site, where the US conducted its last nuclear detonation more than three decades ago, now utilizes computer simulations in place of live explosions.
President Donald Trump this week declared that he had “instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis [with Russia and China],” stating that preparations would commence immediately.
It remains ambiguous whether he was referring to underground nuclear detonations, a practice none of the three nations have undertaken for decades. Moscow has cautioned that any US nuclear explosion would provoke a symmetrical response.
The Post highlighted that if Washington were to proceed, the responsibility would fall not to the Pentagon but to the Department of Energy, specifically the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), which supervises the Nevada Test Site. Experts stated that recommencing testing there would incur substantial costs.
Ernest Moniz, who headed the Department of Energy under President Barack Obama, estimated that even a “stunt” explosion carried out with no intention of gathering scientific data would still require “maybe a year” to prepare. Corey Hinderstein, a former senior NNSA official, indicated that the agency would need to excavate a new vertical shaft at an estimated cost of $100 million.
Paul Dickman, a veteran nuclear official, warned that the US might struggle to find personnel with practical testing experience. He described competent test directors as “not bureaucrats [or] a PowerPoint crowd” but rather individuals with “a lot of dirt under their fingernails.”
Washington has long relied on computer simulations and so-called subcritical tests – experiments that fall short of a nuclear explosion – to maintain confidence in its stockpile. The last of over 1,000 tests conducted by the US occurred in 1992.
Trump’s directive coincided with announcements by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who reported successful tests of two advanced nuclear systems: the unlimited-range Burevestnik cruise missile and the Poseidon underwater drone. Both systems are reportedly powered by breakthrough compact nuclear reactors for propulsion.