0
Atomic Bombs
Atomic bomb is an explosive device in which a large amount of energy is released through nuclear reactions. This makes an atomic bomb, more properly called a nuclear weapon, a much more powerful device than any conventional bomb containing chemical explosives. The first Atomic Bombs were used during World War 2 in 1945 by the US onto 2 Japanese cities.
2,042 Questions
How and why the US developed the atomic bomb?
At the outset of World War 2 there was great fear in the scientific community that Nazi Germany would be the first to develop nuclear weapons. There was no doubt in the minds of physicists, many of whom were refugees from the Nazis, that Hitler would use an atom bomb if he obtained one. Accordingly the United States, Britain and Canada jointly developed the first atomic weapons in what was called the Manhattan Project.
Below are related links to Wikipedia articles on this subject, which is likely far too complex to answer in this forum. You can also try Googling "Nuclear Weapons," and of course you can and should visit your local library. Your librarian will be more than happy to steer you to dozens of books on this subject, which is truly fascinating and at times simply as mind boggling as a nuclear explosion.
Another Answer: US developed atomic bomb by setting up a scientific committee to study the issue. The British research so impressed the Americans that they convinced Roosevelt to begin a program to build an atomic bomb. The American program to build an atomic bomb was code-named the Manhattan Project. The project's first breakthrough came in 1942, when Szilard and Enrico Fermi, another physicist, built the world's first nuclear reactor at the University of Chicago. Groves organized a team of engineers and scientists to build an atomic bomb at a secret laboratory in Los Alamos, New Mexico.
How were atomic bombs triggered?
I believe it was when Albert Einstein wanted to start research on the atomic bomb.
You believe wrong. The only thing Einstein had to do with the atomic bomb project was to sign a letter written by Leo Szilard warning FDR of the possibility of a Nazi atomic bomb and suggesting a study into the possibility. The history of the atomic bomb starts in 1933 with Leo Szilard:
- While crossing a London street in 1933, Leo Szilard invented the nuclear neutron chain reaction, the key to the atomic bomb. However he had no known material that would support a chain reaction.
- In 1934, Leo Szilard was granted his patent on the chain reaction and the atomic bomb.
- In 1936, Leo Szilard signed his patent over to the British Admiralty to keep it out of the hands of the Nazis in Germany.
- In 1938, Otto Hahn in Berlin discovered that Uranium-235 fissioned when hit by a neutron and produced excess neutrons. This made Szilard's patent practical.
- In 1939, Einstein signs Szilard's letter to FDR. A preliminary study is begun late in the year.
- In 1940, MAUD committee begins formal study of bomb physics.
- In 1941, Glenn Seaborg discovers Plutonium.
- In 1942, the Manhattan Project is formally begun.
- July 16, 1945, the Gadget device is tested at Trinity site.
- August 6 & 9, 1945, two atomic bombs are dropped on Japan.
- In 1946, two atomic bombs are fired on Bikini Atoll in Operation Crossroads to test effects on shipping.
- In 1947, the Manhattan Project ends with its responsibilities turned over to the new AEC.
Which president descided to use the atomic bomb against japan?
princess patrick harwood
President Truman
What was the actual number of casualties the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
some places say 140,000 casualties and some say up to 350,000.
im not sure which one is correct, but i do know around 70,000 people died at nagasaki immediately.
hope this helps a bit :)
Was the US the only country that had atomic bombs during World War 2?
Yes, other countries had programs to research nuclear weapons but none developed working ones before the war ended.
When was the first atomic bomb dropped and why?
After the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbor, the Allies bombed Japanese cities including Tokyo. In 1943, the Allies won the Battle of Midway. Shortly after joining WWII (1942) the US started a top secret project known as the Manhattan Project. Led by American scientist J. Oppenheimer, the team worked for 3 years to build an atomic bomb. After officials successfully tested the bomb, they told the Japanese to surrender, or they would face destruction. The Japanese refused to give in. On August 6, 1945, The B-29 bomber 'Enola Gay' dropped an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima. They still didn't surrender so another atomic bomb was dropped. On August 14, Japan surrendered.
Long story short, the Japanese wouldn't surrender so they dropped the atomic bomb. The Japanese still didn't surrender so they dropped another atomic bomb killing more people and they finally surrendered on August 14.
Why did America drop a atomic bomb on hiroshima?
1. America attacked Hiroshima as an act of revenge for them attacking Pearl Harbor.
2. Because America and Japan were engaged in a war & because there was a military base in Hiroshima
Who decided to drop the atomic bomb on japan and why?
President Harry Truman because he (mainly) wanted to avoid having to spend millions of troops in an invasion of Japan to get them to surrender. He also just wanted to show the world that we were the best and we intended to make it stay that way and at a forced peace.
What was the name of the first and second atomic bombs in World War 2?
The Hiroshima bomb was called "Little Boy" and the Nagasaki weapon was called "Fat Man". The plane that dropped the Hiroshima bomb was called "Enola Gay" which was named after the generals mother.
President Harry S. Truman reasoned that a full scale invasion of Japan would cost too many American lives and would still devastate the nation. The United States needed something spectacular too make the traditionally "death over defeat" nation surrender, and a conventional invasion would simply increase the Japanese war effort.
What was the morality of using the atomic bomb?
The morality presented was that dropping the bomb would end the war and save more lives because the U.S. would not have to invade and fight through the cities there to subdue it. == The standard answer (and arguably most true) is that using the Atomic Bomb stopped the Japanese from fighting a protracted war for Japan. While a horrific thing to be sure the loss of life encountered by the dropping of 2 bombs was probably less than what would have been experienced in an island to island, to the last man war of attrition. Hindsight is always 20/20 and people can say all day that we shouldn't have done it, but the reality is that we did it and it can't be taken back. The other thing to consider here is that we warned Japan repeatedly that we were in possession of a weapon that would change the very face of war as we knew it, and that we were prepared to use it. The Japanese told the US to get bent, basically, and even after we dropped the first bomb they refused to surrender. I guess when you get down to brass tacks there really is nothing moral about war. It is a terrible thing to undertake and I think that the decision to use atomic weapons was the best option we had at the time. ==
Was the decision to drop the atomic bombs on japan good or bad?
WW2 was the world's last TOTAL WAR. Total war meaning fought to win with any weapons available (minus Chemical Weapons by treaty signed after WW1). The Atomic Bombings brought man into the atomic age (1945). Without the bombings there would have been no Cold War, no Atomic Age, no end to WW2 without millions of more deaths (for both sides). Only one nation had atomic weapons at the time of the atomic bombings; so it was a good idea. If other nations had the "bomb" it would have been a bad idea. Then it would have been a nuclear war. Such as it was when the Soviets (Russians) tested their first atomic bomb in 1949. Atomic Weapons created a COLD WAR (A stand-off between atomic armed countries). Total wars CANNOT be fought any longer without risking total destruction to both sides, referred to as, "Mutually Assured Destruction" during the cold war (1945-1990). Only conventional wars, not involving NUCLEAR WEAPONS (called "Limited Wars") could be safely fought during the cold war.
Why did Harry Truman order the atomic bomb?
He was faced with the choice of using the Bomb or of ordering a conventional invasion of mainland Japan, which The Pentagon estimated would cost up to a million Allied lives. Because the number of casualties in the Far East had already been horrifically high, and because the Japanese military were known to be extremely cruel to their captors, he regarded the conventional option as unacceptable.
Why did admiral leahy feel the use of the atomic bomb on japan was unnecessary?
He believed that continued bombing attacks and a naval blockade would
finish off all Japenese resistance. He also objected to the atomic bombs use on the grounds that other nations would develop the technology and
in some future conflict it would be used against the US. He also had moral
objections that our use of such a weapon made the US "common to the
barbarians of the Dark Ages".
Who dropped the first atomic bomb and where was it dropped?
It was dropped by the United States by orders of President Truman over Hiroshima, Japan.
Why did the US drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki instead of Tokyo?
If they had been detonated on the ground then a very large part of their explosive energy would have been directed to just making a large hole in the ground. By setting them off about 1000 feet in the air, all that energy was directed into destroying things.
Why was the atomic bomb project called the Manhattan project?
The U.S government project, named for the Manhattan Engineer District that produced the first nuclear weapons in Worl War 2.
Who is the physicist who directed the first atomic bomb?
Julius Robert Oppenheimer was the scientific director of the Manhattan Project, the World War II effort to develop the first nuclear weapons at the secret Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. For this reason he is remembered as 'The Father of the Atomic Bomb'.
Why is Hydrogen bomb more destructive than atom bomb?
A hydrogen bomb is more destructive than an atomic bomb because it has hydrogen. Hydrogen is highly flammable, and if a hydrogen bomb exploded with enough force and just enough fire, a huge wide area of a fiery explosion will occur. This is more destructive than the atomic bomb. Fire basically engulfs everything and destroys all in its path, making for an effective bomb.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wrong!
Hydrogen does not burn in a hydrogen bomb, it fuses releasing atomic energy too. This fusion reaction is over in microseconds, much faster than combustion can start; also it reaches temperatures in the tens of millions of degrees, much hotter than any chemical fire or fission bomb. The reason a fusion bomb is usually more destructive than a fission bomb is the fusion bomb has no upper limit on yield, the fission bomb cannot be built with a yield over 1 megaton. One can just keep adding fusion stages until you get the desired yield.
Who ordered the dropping of atomic bomb on Japan in World War 2?
The actual order was issued by the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the War Department [now called the Defense Department], although the authorization of the President was required before they could issue the order.
That is true, but the official order and authorization was issued by President Truman, but he did not know anything about the bomb until after Roosevelt died.
How many Americans died in the Pacific Theater before the atomic bomb was dropped on Japan?
Asia-Pacific 108,504:
- Army ground forces 41,592
- United States Air Forces 15,694
- Navy/Coast Guard 31,485
- Marine Corps 19,733
- Unidentified Theaters- Army 39
What country did America drop two atomic bombs on?
Nuclear weapons have only been used in combat on Japan.
Why would Franklin D. Roosevelt had given the order to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima?
==Answer 1== Since Roosevelt died before being confronted with that decision, ANY ANSWER will be pure speculation and opinion. However, based on what I know of FDR from many historical sources, I suspect that he, like most, would have not wanted to, but I think, would most certainly have come to the same conclusion as did Truman.j3h.
