The Atomic Bomb The US Decision to drop the atomic bomb on Japan

The Atomic Bomb In 1945 the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan Their purpose was to force the Japanese to surrender and end WW II Each bomb caused a huge amount of death and destruction in Japan.

A Letter to the President In 1939 Scientist Albert Einstein wrote FDR He told Roosevelt that it might be possible to build a new bomb, more powerful than anything ever made

The Manhattan Project Scientists and the Military worked on a secret project to build a nuclear bomb The first successful test was in the New Mexico desert in 1945

Fat Man and Little Boy The US made two atomic bombs One was called “Little Boy” and was dropped on Hiroshima A second was called “Fat Man” and was dropped on Nagasaki

The Enola Gay President Truman decided to drop the new bombs on Japan. He hoped the atomic bomb would end the war The plane that carried the bomb was the Enola Gay, named after the pilot’s mother.

The Mushroom Cloud The first atomic bomb was dropped by the US on Hiroshima on August 6th, The explosion created a mushroom shaped cloud.

Destruction of Hiroshima When the bomb hit it knocked down most buildings in the area. The fires created by the bomb also burned most of the homes made of wood and rice paper.

The Dead and Wounded Over 100,000 people died immediately by the blast. Many thousands more died of radiation sickness and cancer in the days and months after the bomb.

Japan Surrenders Japan surrendered after the second atomic bomb. World War II was ended with the defeat of Japan.

The Hiroshima Peace Park Today in Hiroshima there is a museum and a park to remember the victims of the first atomic bomb.