1953: Secret British nuclear weapons tests begin at the Maralinga test range in southern Australia. Aboriginals are moved from the immediate area during the test years, but nearby, others are exposed to radiation, as are the evacuees after they begin returning in the mid-1980s. British nuclear tests are also conducted at the Emu test range and on the Monte Bello Islands, and at Christmas Island in the South Pacific.

1999: About 90 invited visitors tour the outside of Tsuruga nuclear power plant in Fukui Prefecture, Japan, just four hours after a leak occurred at its No. 2 reactor. Though the Japan Atomic Power Co. (Genden) stated there would be no danger to visitors—and its officials explained there would be no exposure to radiation—its decision to conduct a tour in the aftermath of an accident is thought controversial.

1953: A drought in far western Australia ends a...