...Scrupulous use of the internet · Making an understanding of the science behind the creation of the atomic bomb · An evaluation of Albert Einstein’s letter to President Roosevelt The first section of this investigation will deliver factual material from sources with accurate references. The next section is an evaluation...
Words: 2078 - Pages: 9
...The Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki The World War II had been going on for over two years and the U.S. was staying in isolationism. But on December 7, 1941 Japan launched an attack on Pearl Harbor. After this The United States declared war on Japan. On August 6, 1945, little boy, the first atomic bomb ever used in war was dropped on the city of Hiroshima. This resulted in 70,000-80,000 people died immediately and another 70,000 were injured. Hiroshima at the time was very large with roughly 350.000 people living there. It was chosen because it had industrial and military significance. Three days later it was followed by Fatman, the second and last atomic bomb used in war, which was dropped on the city of Nagasaki. This resulted in over 40,000-75,000 immediately dying. Originally Fatman was to be dropped on the city of Kokura, but because of the weather they decided to bomb their secondary target Nagasaki. Nagasaki was important because it was one of the largest seaports in Japan and the large industrial activities including producing military equipment.Many things led up to the bombing of these two great Japanese cities. The first event leading up to the bombing is World War II and Japans involvement in bringing the US out of isolationism. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor the US was already furious with Japan and wanted revenge. Another thing leading up to this event was Manhattan Project. This was started in 1939 when the U.S., feared that the Germans...
Words: 949 - Pages: 4
...Research Paper: The Atomic Bomb Strayer University His 360: Twentieth Century World Research Paper: The Atomic Bomb March, 2011 Micheal McMillin Professor Curran Research Paper: Atomic Bomb: I. Executive Summary. On August Sixth and Ninth in 1945 the Japanese Island’s two cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bombed with a new type of weapon. The Atomic bomb created to end the Second World War, and to showcase The United States in becoming a Superpower. After the Atomic Bomb use it would affect the cities of Japan for years to come, but also the world leading to a new arms race that still affects us today. II. Essay How can one describe the power of the Atomic Bomb? With the power to bring two cities to its knees and kill thousands of people and affect people for years to come. The Atomic Bomb was used to bring Japan’s unconstitutional surrender. The used of this weapon is still under massive debate, even to this day. Was it ethical to use the Atomic Bomb not once, but twice on one nation? In using the Atomic Bomb on Japan it showed the world the deadly weapon the United States had created it. In the use of the Atomic Bomb we show the world and more importantly Russia what we developed. Now this Atomic age had begun as we enter the time known aa the Cold War. In the late 1930’s European and American physicists discovered how the fission of atoms could create a powerful an explosive weapon. In the year 1939 Albert Einstein would write a letter to President...
Words: 1567 - Pages: 7
...life changing decision to drop an atomic bomb named “Little Boy” in Japan’s Hiroshima. The result of this weapon ended up in destroying more than 4 square miles of the city. The company who made the bomb was called Enola Gay. The motive behind the doing of this was to threaten Japan and make them surrender in World War 2. It is a fact that this was the first time in history that a nuclear weapon was used. This event is still one of the most important topics in history. It has been debated by an abundance of historians: Was it justified despite 129,000 innocent citizens died? There isn’t a definite answer to this but there were both sides to the story. Bombing was justified It is widely believed that the bombing was brutal and cruel. However, it was the reason that ended World War 2, and if America did not drop the bomb, the losses of soldiers would be even at a larger number than the amount of people who died in the drop of the bomb. It has also been said to save a lot of American’s lives and soldiers. This statement is backed up by the quotation “Fighting would be fierce and the losses heavy.” that was said by Harry S. Truman in 1955. This quote can tell us that during that time he believed that if the war was still going on, it was very likely that the upcoming invasions of Japan would cause even more severe damage and casualties of American soldiers and citizens. Winston Churchill even estimated that if the bomb wasn’t dropped, two hundred and fifty thousand British...
Words: 1750 - Pages: 7
...Truman’s Moral Dilemma President Truman’s Decision of dropping the Atomic Bomb brought much controversy to the U.S and other countries that were involved in the war, controversy which can be argued to be both good and bad. The U.S was the very first country to develop an atomic bomb, and their focus was to use it and show the world they had it. This action saved and took many lives around the entire world. The question on whether such a powerful attack was necessary to end the war has often been asked. Harry S. Truman became president after Theodore Roosevelt had died of a brain hemorrhage in April 1945. Roosevelt sadly passed away while World War II was still going on. The death...
Words: 1018 - Pages: 5
...all started when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, and the United States entered into World War II. When the United States realized that Germany attempted to build an atomic bomb, Americans began to concentrate on their research about creating an atomic bomb more heavily. President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Manhattan Project, which included a group of top scientists, under General Leslie R. Groves, who worked around the clock to try to develop an atomic bomb within three years (Bondi 493). The Americans and the British combined their efforts to research the development of the bomb and created plants and factories to work in (“The Atomic Bomb…” 257). They created plants for three separate processes: electromagnetic, gaseous diffusion, and thermal diffusion. These plants helped create the plutonium and uranium 235 needed to manufacture the atomic bomb (Gerdes 142). The secrecy of the Manhattan Project was essential in order to develop the atomic bombs to end World War II. The United States and Great Britain kept the development of the atomic bomb a secret (Bondi 493). In order to keep the secret, Groves spread the work out between laboratories so that the people working on the bomb could not figure out they were manufacturing. The members of the Manhattan Project asked the scientists questions about the bomb, and they gave answers back, but they did not know what the responses were for. The project consisted of so many restrictions for the employees in order to keep the secrecy...
Words: 1557 - Pages: 7
...The first hydrogen bomb was tested by the United States on November 1, 1952 on Enewetak, in the Marshall Islands. Shortly after, on August 12, 1953, the Soviet Union tested their own, smaller version of the bomb in Kazakhstan. We continued to build and improve our hydrogen bombs to be sure the Soviets wouldn’t surpass us in the Arms Race portion of the Cold War. The effects of the bomb were catastrophic, causing a large explosion at the center of the blast, instantly vaporizing everything in extremely high temperatures. The gas caused by this heat, when it reached an “overpressure” - pressure far exceeding the normal atmospheric pressure - explodes outwards in the form of a shock wave. The shock wave, though decreasing as it...
Words: 902 - Pages: 4
...build an atomic bomb, Americans began to concentrate on their research about creating an atomic bomb. President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Manhattan Project, which included a group of top scientists, under General Leslie R. Groves, who worked around the clock to try to develop an atomic bomb within three years. The Americans and the British combined their efforts to research the development of the bomb and created plants and factories to work in. They created plants for three separate processes: electromagnetic, gaseous diffusion, and thermal diffusion. These plants helped create the plutonium and uranium 235 needed to manufacture the atomic bomb. The secrecy of the Manhattan Project was essential in order to develop the atomic bombs to end World War II. The United States and Great Britain kept the development of the atomic bomb a secret. In order to keep the secret, Groves spread the work out between laboratories so that the people working on the bomb could not figure out they were manufacturing. The members of the Manhattan Project asked the scientists questions about the bomb, and they gave answers back, but they did not know what the responses were for. The project consisted of so many restrictions for the employees in order to keep the secrecy of the project. They could not hold private conversations about the material they were working on because after awhile, people might have been able to put it together and determine that they were creating a bomb. Employees...
Words: 1420 - Pages: 6
...The Finishers The use of the two atomic bombs in early August of 1945 was among the huge turning points that lead to the end of World War Two. The organization responsible for the research and development of these nuclear weapons was known as the Manhattan project. The development of this bomb changed the way scientists, as well as the rest of the world, looked at nuclear energy. It also help in bringing along one of the biggest arms races in history, the cold war. So why was this atomic bomb produced? It all started with the discovery of nuclear fission by German chemists Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann in 1938. This is what made the idea of creating an atomic bomb a very possible theory. The Manhattan project was created in 1942 “During its four years of existence the Manhattan Project mobilized over 120,000 people—including most of the United States' physicists, chemists, engineers, doctors, and technicians, along with a small group of outstanding German/Austrian refugee scientists—into 37 top-secret installations.” (Avery, 383) This made the Manhattan project as big as the auto industry at the time. Basically, the creation of the atomic bomb was inspired by the fear that Germany would make one first, which is what they were on track of doing. On August 6, 1946, a Boeing B-29 Bomber named the Enola Gay, piloted by Colonel Paul Tibbets, and dropped “Little Boy” on Hiroshima, Japan. “Little Boy” exploded 2,000 feet above Hiroshima in a blast equal to 15 kilotons of TNT,...
Words: 746 - Pages: 3
...History of the A-Bomb In early August 1945 atomic bombs were dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These two bombs quickly yielded the surrender of Japan and the end of American involvement in World War II. By 1946 the two bombs caused the death of perhaps as many as 240,000 Japanese citizens1. The popular, or traditional, view that dominated the 1950s and 60s – put forth by President Harry Truman and Secretary of War Henry Stimson – was that the dropping of the bomb was a diplomatic maneuver aimed at intimating and gaining the upper hand in relations with Russia. Today, fifty-four years after the two bombings, with the advantage of historical hindsight and the advantage of new evidence, a third view, free of obscuring bias and passion, can be presented. First, the dropping of the bomb was born out of complex infinite military, domestic and diplomatic pressures and concerns. Second, many potentially viable alternatives to dropping the bombs were not explored by Truman and other men in power, as they probably should have been. Lastly, because these alternatives were never explored, we can only conjecture over whether or not Truman’s decision was a morally just one, and if indeed it was necessary to use atomic energy to win the war. The war in Asia had its roots in the early 1930s. Japan had expansionist aims in Eastern Asia and the Western Pacific, especially in Indochina2. In July of 1940 the United States placed an embargo on materials exported to...
Words: 3510 - Pages: 15
...Modern History Conflict in the Pacific 1937-1941 Due: Thursday 28th of August, 2008 Alyce Wearne Task: Evaluate the argument that America was justified in using atomic weapons against Japan in 1945. As one of the most significant and consequential decisions in the history of the world, President Harry Truman’s allowance of atomic weapons towards the end of World War II, of which he himself understood would cause both mass devastation and indignation, is still one of the most controversial and heavily debated topics in today’s society. This was partially due to the adverse underestimation and seemingly ignorant approach the American’s had towards their latest development of mass destruction; almost oblivious to the immense aftermath of physical injury, civilian death and emotional torment it would produce for those involved. This decision, ultimately made by one man, affected not only America and Japan, but the world. Dispute over this was, and continues to be highly generated, the event causing anger and infuriation to millions across the world. This resentment did not just accumulate from the lack of awareness and slaughter of innocent life, but from the graphic images shown in newspapers, the casualties, and the torturous amount of death underwent as a result of the bomb. As a Japanese survivor documented: “The appearance of people was . . . well, they all had skin blackened by burns. . . . They had no hair because their hair was burned, and at a glance you...
Words: 5990 - Pages: 24
...Shortly after the first atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, World War II came to and, and the terrible reality of the atomic age began. Sixteen-year-old Sorry Rinamu has lived on the Bikini Atoll in the western Pacific all his life. Now the United States government wants to use his home as a site for atomic weapons tests. The islanders are told that they must vacate the island in the interest of world peace but can return when the land is safe again. Sorry is one of the only people who doesn't believe the story. He is sure that radioactive fallout will poison the blue waters and beautiful white sand beaches, and Bikini Atoll will be lost to its people forever. Sorry knows that he has no choice but stop this disaster before it starts, even if...
Words: 434 - Pages: 2
...to the development of an atomic bomb in Germany. In the letter, Einstein wrote,”It may be possible to set off a nuclear chain reaction in a large mass of uranium, by which large amounts of power and new radium like elements would be generated.” He continued,” This new development could lead to the creation of bombs, and as it seems, but less likely, the construction of an even bigger, new type of bomb.” President Roosevelt, although skeptical at first, decided to go through with the research and in 1941 the Manhattan Project was born. Four years later on August 6, the United States Dropped the first nuclear atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima wiping out 90 percent of the city, killing more than 80,000 people, and later tens of thousands more. Then again on August 9, another bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki and killing more than 40,000. 6 days later, the Emperor of Japan announced Japan’s official surrender to the United States in World War II. The effects and after effects of the the two bombs dropped shocked the entire world, even those a part of the Manhattan Project. The Japanese Emperor Hirohito described the bombs as the ”new and most cruel bomb.” This research paper will discuss the pros and cons of the use of nuclear weapons among different countries and how they affects the lives of those living within them. Nuclear weapons are crucial to the defense of a nation at war. When the United States used the 2 atomic bombs, nicknamed “little boy” and...
Words: 918 - Pages: 4
...1945 and August 9th, 1945, two bombs (one named ‘Little Boy’ and the latter called ‘Fat Man’) were dropped onto Hiroshima and Nagasaki of Japan by the United States of America during World War II. These two are what are known as atomic or nuclear bombs. The ‘Little Boy’ caused an estimated 140,000 casualties and the ‘Fat Man’ resulted in about 75,000 fatalities. If, at the time, Japan had such bombs of their own and decided to retaliate, World War II would have become a nuclear war, which would have devastated both countries and their civilians. However, that event is 7 decades old. Many countries have, unfortunately, produced hundreds more of the life-destroying bombs (since then). These bombs are the nuclear weapons that have...
Words: 1749 - Pages: 7
...The Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: History's Great Miscalculation On August 6, 1945, a new step in technological warfare was taken when the first atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima, Japan. The impact of the bomb alone killed at least 66,000 people.1 This was an event that would not soon be forgotten in history. The Americans, who knew the devastating effects of their new weapon, still chose to use it rather than an alternative means to peace. Many people still argue whether or not it was necessary when Japanese surrender was considered to be a matter of time. Historians also dispute whether the campaign was a morally justified objective. This phrase alone brings up many interesting questions. Can killing thousands of innocent people ever be considered "justified"? Considering these circumstances, the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was not militarily or morally justified. In 1939 Franklin Roosevelt, the President of the United States received a verysignificant letter from the famous physicist, Albert Einstein.2 Contained in this letter were details concerning the importance of nuclear research with regards to gaining the upper hand in the war. Roosevelt agreed and approved $6,000 in initial funding. Many scientists began realizing the importance of nuclear fission and in 1940 The National Defense Research Committee was formed. This group's purpose was to oversee research and provide more funding. Many of the world's best physicists...
Words: 2278 - Pages: 10
