Smiling Buddha
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Indira Gandhi being escorted around Pokhran, the site of India’s first nuclear test |
Throughout its development, the device was formally called the “Peaceful Nuclear Explosive”, but it was usually referred to as the Smiling Buddha… as a signal to China… [It] was scheduled to occur on May 18, 1974 [on] Buddha Jayanti, a festival… marking the birth of Gautama Buddha. [The U.S. military called it] Operation Happy Krishna…
… when the blast occurred successfully… [t]he hotline was not working, so [the official] went to a nearby village… called [Gandhi] from an ordinary landline, and said, “Madam, Buddha has finally smiled.” [Link]
I’m surprised the next test wasn’t called the Chortling Mahatma. Oppenheimer had a rather less jolly reaction.
on Tuesday, June 17th, 2008, 12:35 am in History, Military, Photographs › 
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The Pakistani code for the Simla accord was ‘ladka hua’ (a boy is born) if the accord was signed, and ‘ladki hui’(a girl is born) if it failed. A young Benazir found it very sexist of his dad.
of her dad. I am gender-blind, see? ;)
We had “And buddha smiled” essay in 5th or 6th grade. School board somehow managed to make nuclear explosion the most boring chapter in that book.