U.S. Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory

The United States Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory was established here in 1946 to manage the aftermath of Operation Crossroads, a series of nuclear tests in the Pacific. After these detonations, numerous ships returned to this shipyard heavily contaminated with radioactive fallout. The laboratory was created as a dedicated facility to develop methods for scrubbing these vessels and to research how radiation affected both materials and biological subjects. For over two decades, this site served as a primary military hub for cold war radiological research, influencing how the government understood nuclear hazards and civil defense.