The Manhattan Project

What was the role of The Manhattan Project? The Manhattan Project was a code name for the US atomic bomb built during World War II. This project was started on May 12, 1942 when President Roosevelt signed an order creating a top secret project to develop the nuclear weapon. It was kept top secret because of the fear that nuclear technology would be stolen by the enemies, Germany or Japan.

Oak Ridge, Tennessee To keep The Manhattan Project a secret, the U.S. government created a top “Secret Town” which is now known as Oak Ridge, TN. The government needed land to build facilities to develop the nuclear weapons without attracting enemy spies. Therefore, they bought about 60,000 acres of land in Oak Ridge, forcing nearly 1,000 families to move in less than two weeks. Workers and their families were housed on the property. The workers were sworn to secrecy and only informed of the tasks they needed to perform. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSf3GOMziOg

Deciding to Drop the Atomic Bomb By the time the first atomic bomb had been made, Germany had already surrendered and World War II in Europe was over. Japan was defeated as well, but would not surrender. The US was contemplating an invasion of Japan. Army leaders figured that anywhere from 500,000 to 1 million US and Allied soldiers would die in an invasion. President Truman decided to drop the atomic bomb instead.

Japan Surrenders On August 6, 1945, an American airplane dropped an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, Japan. This bomb destroyed the city and tens of thousands of people were killed. Japan would still not surrender. Three days later, on August 9, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on another city in Japan, Nagazski. Six days after the bombing of Nagazski, August 14, 1945, the emperor of Japan, Hirohito, made an announcement on the radio that Japan surrendered. This day became known as Victory in Japan Day, aka V-J Day.

How do you think the people of the United States felt about decision to drop the atomic bomb on Japan? Read “The Atomic Bomb” in your Week 27 newspaper.