21,830 Babies' Bones 2016
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21,830 babies' bones on the Maralinga air-strip -
Close up of bones -
Loction of the augmented reality -
Single femur
Nuclear Futures Program of Arts
This is an outcome of the Nuclear Futures program of creative arts responding to the legacy of nuclear testing.
Augmented reality placed on the Maralinga airstrip.
Defence Report DEFE 16/808 revealed that from 1957 to 1978, 21,830 dead babies' femurs were secretly taken for testing in order to determine the spread of radiation from atomic tests carried out at Maralinga. Samples came from hospitals all around Australia.
See Frank Walker, MARALINGA, Hachette, 2014
21,830 virtual bones can be viewed on the Maralinga air-strip, on smartphone through the free app Layar. In Layar, choose geo-layers and search for 'maralinga'.
As phone signal is rare at Maralinga, it is possible that this work will never be seen.