The U.S. program of atmospheric nuclear testing exposed a number of the population to the hazards of fallout . Estimating exact numbers , and the exact consequences , of people exposed has been medically very difficult , with the exception of the high exposures of Marshall Islanders and Japanese fishers in the case of the Castle Bravo incident in 1954 . A number of groups of U.S. citizens — especially farmers and inhabitants of cities downwind of the Nevada Test Site and U.S. military workers at various tests — have sued for compensation and recognition of their exposure , many successfully . The passage of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act of 1990 allowed for a systematic filing of compensation claims in relation to testing as well as those employed at nuclear weapons facilities . As of June 2009 over $ 1.4 billion total has been given in compensation , with over $ 660 million going to " downwinders "
Castle Bravo
Castle Bravo
Nuclear and radiation accidents and incidents