Britain Tests Hydrogen Bomb

Date: May 15, 1957 • Location: Malden Island, International

At Malden Island in the Pacific Ocean, Britain tests its first hydrogen bomb in Operation Grapple.

Malden Island, sometimes called Independence Island in the 19th century, is a low, arid, uninhabited atoll in the central Pacific Ocean, about 39 km2 (15 sq mi) in area. It is one of the Line Islands belonging to the Republic of Kiribati. The lagoon is entirely enclosed by land, though it is connected to the sea by underground channels, and is quite salty.