Atomic Bomb
"I always go back to Harry Truman: should we drop an atomic bomb to save 100,000 lives? That's a hell of a decision to make." - Lee Iacocca
On August 6, 1945 the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan and then another on Nagasaki, Japan three days later. This was an attempt to end the dispute during WWII.
Background On the War:
Although World War II started in 1939, the United States did not enter the war until 1941. The Japanese attacked a United States naval base at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. The next day, December 8th, 1941, the United States declared war on Japan. Within days, Japanese allies Germany and Italy declared war on the United States making the U.S. and main allies Great Britain an the Soviet Union part of another global war. At the time, physicists had developed the science of fission, which was the act of splitting the atom to create immense amounts of energy. The United States was in a race with Germany and Japan to use this process to develop an atomic bomb. United States president Franklin D. Roosevelt launched the Manhattan Project to ultimately develop an atomic bomb and use it to end the war.
Although World War II started in 1939, the United States did not enter the war until 1941. The Japanese attacked a United States naval base at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. The next day, December 8th, 1941, the United States declared war on Japan. Within days, Japanese allies Germany and Italy declared war on the United States making the U.S. and main allies Great Britain an the Soviet Union part of another global war. At the time, physicists had developed the science of fission, which was the act of splitting the atom to create immense amounts of energy. The United States was in a race with Germany and Japan to use this process to develop an atomic bomb. United States president Franklin D. Roosevelt launched the Manhattan Project to ultimately develop an atomic bomb and use it to end the war.
The Drop Of the Bombs The bomb was dropped on Hiroshima August 6, 1945 at approximately 8:15 a.m. by the U.S. bomber plane Enola Gay piloted by Paul Tibbets (pictured right). The bomb killed 80,00 people and left devastating impacts on Hiroshima. Three days later a bomb was dropped on Nagasaki killing 40,000 but, due to radiation 100,000 more died. Birth defects that were often fatal were common in babies born for several months after the bombs. The war ended Sep. 1945 after the drops of the atomic bombs.
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Connections to Today
The drop of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki (bomb sites pictured below) to end WWII was possibly the single biggest event in modern history. The bombings in Japan represent the only use of nuclear weapons in war to date with an estimated 150,000 to 220,000 people killed in the two Japanese cities (Fessenden). The radiation from the bomb caused deformities and formations of cancerous cells that are still present today. WWII survivors can be seen with these deformities and Japanese elders who were children or the war era can be seen with deformities/burns/symptoms caused by the war. Because of the amount of destruction done by the bombs, other countries raced to create their own nuclear weapons. Even if they didn't plan to use them, the bombs served a great purpose creating a theory still used today. The theory of mutually assured destruction proposes that if a country has nuclear weapons they will not be attacked for the fear that they will use their nuclear weapons on the attacker. That has so far been practical in the sense that nuclear weaponry has not been used since WWII.
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References
Why did the US drop the bomb on Japan Background on what the U.S. had in mind when dropping the bombs. Children Exposed to the Bomb Effect the bomb had on children in the surrounding area. Health Effects of the Atomic Bomb How the bomb killed weeks after the initial impact. U.S. Involvement in WWII |
The Atomic Bomb Era "In Hiroshima, 30 days after the first atomic bomb destroyed the city and shook the world-people are still dying, mysteriously and horribly..." - “The Atomic Plague” The Manhattan Project Summary of the Manhattan Project and the testing of the first atomic bomb. Nagasaki and Hiroshima Background of the bomb sites in Nagasaki and Hiroshima. |
Website, Research and Slideshow by Ross DeLorenzo and Cole Hannan