Difference between revisions of "Vela Incident"

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The '''Vela Incident''', also known as the '''South Atlantic Flash''', was a "double flash" of light detected by an American Vela Hotel satellite on September 22, 1979, near the Prince Edward Islands off Antarctica, which many believe was of nuclear origin. The most widespread theory among those who believe the flash was of nuclear origin is that it resulted from a joint [[South African]]-[[Israel]]i nuclear test.
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The '''Vela Incident''', also known as the '''South Atlantic Flash''', was a "double flash" of light detected by an American Vela Hotel satellite on September 22, 1979, near the Prince Edward Islands off Antarctica, which many believe was of nuclear origin.<ref>''[https://gosint.wordpress.com/2020/09/22/on-this-day-the-vela-incident-september-22-1979/ "On This Day – The VELA Incident (September 22 1979)"]''</ref> The most widespread theory among those who believe the flash was of nuclear origin is that it resulted from a joint [[South African]]-[[Israel]]i nuclear test.<ref>''[https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/116666 "US INTERAGENCY INTELLIGENCE MEMORANDUM, 'THE 22 SEPTEMBER 1979 EVENT'"]''</ref>{{QB|“There was indication of a nuclear explosion in the region of [[South Africa]] – either South Africa, [[Israel]] using a ship at sea, or nothing.” (President [[Jimmy Carter]] – White House Diary, September 22, 1979)<ref>''Jimmy Carter, White House Diary (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2010) p. 357''</ref>}}
  
In September 1979 a US Vela satellite detected a double flash over the Indian Ocean that was suspected, but never confirmed to be a nuclear test, despite extensive air sampling by Boeing WC-135 Constant Phoenix aircraft of the United States Air Force. If the Vela Incident was a nuclear test, [[South Africa]] is one of the countries, possibly in collaboration with Israel, that is suspected of carrying it out. No official confirmation of its being a nuclear test has been made by South Africa, and expert agencies have disagreed on their assessments. In 1997, South African Deputy Foreign Minister [[Aziz Pahad]] stated that South Africa ''had'' conducted a test, but later retracted his statement as being a report of rumours.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Safrica/Vela.html |title=Aziz Pahad's statement and retraction discussed here |publisher=Nuclearweaponarchive.org |accessdate=15 May 2011}}</ref>
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==Detection==
 +
In September 1979 a US Vela satellite detected a double flash over the [[Indian Ocean]] that was suspected, but never confirmed to be a nuclear test, despite extensive air sampling by Boeing WC-135 Constant Phoenix aircraft of the [[US Air Force]]. If the Vela Incident was a nuclear test, [[South Africa]] is one of the countries, possibly in collaboration with [[Israel]], that is suspected of carrying it out. No official confirmation of its being a nuclear test has been made by South Africa, and expert agencies have disagreed on their assessments. In 1997, [[South Africa]]n Deputy Foreign Minister [[Aziz Pahad]] stated that South Africa ''had'' conducted a test, but later retracted his statement as being a report of rumours.<ref>''[http://nuclearweaponarchive.org/Safrica/Vela.html "Aziz Pahad's statement and retraction discussed here"]''</ref>
  
In February 1994 Commodore Dieter Gerhardt, former commander of South Africa's Simon's Town naval base who was later convicted of spying for the USSR, was reported to have said:
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==Dieter Gerhardt's testimony==
{{cquote|Although I was not directly involved in planning or carrying out the operation, I learned unofficially that the flash was produced by an Israeli-South African test code-named ''Operation Phoenix''. The explosion was clean and was not supposed to be detected. But they were not as smart as they thought, and the weather changed - so the Americans were able to pick it up.<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=vgwAAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA15 Proliferation: A flash from the past] David Albright, [http://thebulletin.org ''The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists''] Nov 1997, pp. 15</ref>}}
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In February 1994 Commodore [[Dieter Gerhardt]], former commander of South Africa's Simon's Town naval base (who was later convicted of spying for the USSR) was reported to have said:
 +
{{cquote|Although I was not directly involved in planning or carrying out the operation, I learned unofficially that the flash was produced by an Israeli-South African test code-named ''Operation Phoenix''. The explosion was clean and was not supposed to be detected. But they were not as smart as they thought, and the weather changed - so the Americans were able to pick it up.<ref>''[http://books.google.com/books?id=vgwAAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA15 "Proliferation: A flash from the past"]''</ref>}}
  
In 2000, Gerhardt claimed that Israel agreed in 1974 to arm eight Jericho II missiles with "special warheads" for South Africa.<ref>{{cite web |publisher=PBS Newshour |date=2 May 2005  |title=Tracking Nuclear Proliferation |url=http://www.pbs.org/newshour/indepth_coverage/military/proliferation/countries/s-africa.html}}</ref>
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In 2000, Gerhardt claimed that [[Israel]] agreed in 1974 to arm eight Jericho II missiles with "special warheads" for [[South Africa]].<ref>''[http://www.pbs.org/newshour/indepth_coverage/military/proliferation/countries/s-africa.html "Tracking Nuclear Proliferation"]''</ref>
  
In 2010, ''The Guardian'' released South African government documents that it alleged confirmed the existence of Israel's nuclear arsenal, and were associated with an Israeli offer to sell South Africa nuclear weapons in 1975.<ref>{{cite news
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==South African documents==
|title=Revealed: how Israel offered to sell South Africa nuclear weapons
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In 2010, ''[[The Guardian]]'' released [[South Africa]]n government documents that it alleged confirmed the existence of Israel's nuclear arsenal, and were associated with an Israeli offer to sell South Africa nuclear weapons in 1975.<ref>''[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/may/23/israel-south-africa-nuclear-weapons "Revealed: how Israel offered to sell South Africa nuclear weapons"]</ref>
|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/may/23/israel-south-africa-nuclear-weapons
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<ref>''[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/may/23/israel-south-africa-nuclear-documents "The memos and minutes that confirm Israel's nuclear stockpile"]''</ref> Israel categorically denied these allegations and said that the documents do not indicate any offer for a sale of [[nuclear weapons]]. Israeli President [[Shimon Peres]] said that ''The Guardian'' article was based on "selective interpretation... and not on concrete facts."<ref>''[http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/25/world/middleeast/25israel.html "Israel Denies It Offered South Africa Warheads"]''</ref>
|work=The Guardian |location=UK |date=24 May 2010| first=Chris| last=McGreal| accessdate=24 May 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=The memos and minutes that confirm Israel's nuclear stockpile|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/may/23/israel-south-africa-nuclear-documents
 
|work=The Guardian |location=UK |date=24 May 2010| first=Chris| last=McGreal| accessdate=24 May 2010}}</ref> Israel categorically denied these allegations and said that the documents do not indicate any offer for a sale of nuclear weapons. [[Israeli President]] [[Shimon Peres]] said that ''The Guardian'' article was based on "selective interpretation... and not on concrete facts."<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/25/world/middleeast/25israel.html | work=The New York Times | title=Israel Denies It Offered South Africa Warheads | first=Isabel | last=Kershner | date=24 May 2010}}</ref>
 
  
 
[[Avner Cohen]], author of ''Israel and the Bomb'' and ''The Worst-Kept Secret: Israel's Bargain with the Bomb'', said:
 
[[Avner Cohen]], author of ''Israel and the Bomb'' and ''The Worst-Kept Secret: Israel's Bargain with the Bomb'', said:
:"Nothing in the documents suggests there was an actual offer by Israel to sell nuclear weapons to the regime in Pretoria."<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/avner-cohen-yitzhak-rabin-would-have-opposed-sale-of-nuclear-weapons-1981962.html | location=London | work=The Independent | title=Avner Cohen: Yitzhak Rabin would have opposed sale of nuclear weapons | date=25 May 2010}}</ref>
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:"Nothing in the documents suggests there was an actual offer by Israel to sell nuclear weapons to the regime in Pretoria."<ref>''[http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/avner-cohen-yitzhak-rabin-would-have-opposed-sale-of-nuclear-weapons-1981962.html "Avner Cohen: Yitzhak Rabin would have opposed sale of nuclear weapons"]''</ref>
 
 
 
{{SMWDocs}}
 
{{SMWDocs}}
 
==References==
 
==References==
 
{{Reflist}}
 
{{Reflist}}

Latest revision as of 10:25, 23 September 2020

Event.png Vela Incident  Rdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
Orthographic projection centered on the Prince Edward Island.png
DateSeptember 22, 1979

The Vela Incident, also known as the South Atlantic Flash, was a "double flash" of light detected by an American Vela Hotel satellite on September 22, 1979, near the Prince Edward Islands off Antarctica, which many believe was of nuclear origin.[1] The most widespread theory among those who believe the flash was of nuclear origin is that it resulted from a joint South African-Israeli nuclear test.[2]

“There was indication of a nuclear explosion in the region of South Africa – either South Africa, Israel using a ship at sea, or nothing.” (President Jimmy Carter – White House Diary, September 22, 1979)[3]

Detection

In September 1979 a US Vela satellite detected a double flash over the Indian Ocean that was suspected, but never confirmed to be a nuclear test, despite extensive air sampling by Boeing WC-135 Constant Phoenix aircraft of the US Air Force. If the Vela Incident was a nuclear test, South Africa is one of the countries, possibly in collaboration with Israel, that is suspected of carrying it out. No official confirmation of its being a nuclear test has been made by South Africa, and expert agencies have disagreed on their assessments. In 1997, South African Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad stated that South Africa had conducted a test, but later retracted his statement as being a report of rumours.[4]

Dieter Gerhardt's testimony

In February 1994 Commodore Dieter Gerhardt, former commander of South Africa's Simon's Town naval base (who was later convicted of spying for the USSR) was reported to have said:

Although I was not directly involved in planning or carrying out the operation, I learned unofficially that the flash was produced by an Israeli-South African test code-named Operation Phoenix. The explosion was clean and was not supposed to be detected. But they were not as smart as they thought, and the weather changed - so the Americans were able to pick it up.[5]

In 2000, Gerhardt claimed that Israel agreed in 1974 to arm eight Jericho II missiles with "special warheads" for South Africa.[6]

South African documents

In 2010, The Guardian released South African government documents that it alleged confirmed the existence of Israel's nuclear arsenal, and were associated with an Israeli offer to sell South Africa nuclear weapons in 1975.[7] [8] Israel categorically denied these allegations and said that the documents do not indicate any offer for a sale of nuclear weapons. Israeli President Shimon Peres said that The Guardian article was based on "selective interpretation... and not on concrete facts."[9]

Avner Cohen, author of Israel and the Bomb and The Worst-Kept Secret: Israel's Bargain with the Bomb, said:

"Nothing in the documents suggests there was an actual offer by Israel to sell nuclear weapons to the regime in Pretoria."[10]

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References