On 16 September 1950 , the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom , Clement Attlee sounded out his Australian counterpart , Robert Menzies about the prospect of conducting British nuclear weapons tests in Australia . Menzies was agreeable . In April 1952 , the British government asked if Titterton could assist with the forthcoming test , now codenamed Operation Hurricane , as he was one of the few people outside the United States who had experience in the planning and conduct of nuclear tests . On Oliphant 's advice , the vice chancellor , Sir Douglas Copland , agreed to release Titterton . Two further nuclear tests were carried out in 1953 at Emu Field , South Australia , as part of Operation Totem . Titterton and other scientists from the ANU conducted neutron flux measurements with photographic emulsions and neuron-threshold detectors . In July 1955 , in response to growing concerns about health hazards related to British nuclear tests , the government created the Atomic Weapons Tests Safety Committee ( AWTSC ) , with the power to veto tests it felt were a danger to people , flora or fauna . Titterton was one of its members , along with Leslie H. Martin , W. A. S. Butement , C. E. Eddy , Philip Baxter and L. J. Dwyer . In this capacity , Titterton witnessed British nuclear tests at Maralinga , starting with Operation Mosaic in May and June 1956
Operation Hurricane
Operation Hurricane
Ernest Titterton