The Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a stepping stone for the United States of America, it would change the meaning of war forever. The development of the first Atomic bomb would put America in the lead, surpassing our enemies in World War II. The Project was one of the most secretive projects in the history of The United States and was a turning point in the history of twentieth-century science. This new bomb had the potential of nuclear annihilation and was also one of the most costly top secret projects, costing little over 2 billion dollars. We will examine how the United States got its hands on the projects, the decision on when and how to use the bombs, and the after math of dropping the bombs.
It all started with key experiments …show more content…
President Roosevelt no longer being in office, President Truman was now in charge of making this decision. While President Truman was in Potsdam, Germany, he was informed that the Trinity Test had been a complete success, delighted with the good news he was sure he could bring the war to a quick end, whilst saving the lives of thousands of American soldiers. In Order to make his decision President Truman had committees of experts advising him on the matter. One committee in specific was the Interim Committee, this committee was composed of top scientist, and military and government officials including Secretary of War Henry Stimson, General C. Marshall, Enrico Fermi, and J. Robert Oppenheimer (McKain). The committee unanimously recommended that the atomic bomb be used against Japan as soon as possible and without warning. President Truman ultimatum for Japan to surrender was the last hope of avoiding the use of the atomic bomb. When Japan didn’t surrender, President Truman signed the order to drop the bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. The bomb which was called ‘Little Boy’ Bomb, was carried in the B-29 Enola Gay plane piloted by Lieutenant Colonel Paul W. Tibbets (Hughes). With fear from the bomb exploding when taking off, William Parsons was order to go on the plane and finish …show more content…
Nearly 4 years after the United States dropped the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Soviet Union detonated theirs. While some scientist deeply regretted their involvement, some scientist and government officials were in favor of going one step further. One of the scientist that regretted his involvement was Albert Einstein, after pictures of Hiroshima and Nagasaki reached the United States. He wrote in 1954 “I made one great mistake in my life, when I signed a letter to FDR recommending atom bombs to be made.” If he would’ve known that the Germans would not succeed in producing an atomic bomb, he would have never lifted a finger. Despite the nuclear arms reduction agreements between the United States and Russia, the spread of these weapons of mass destruction has increased. However, after World War II, nuclear energy found many beneficial uses. The first nuclear power plant began operating in 1957. Radioactive isotopes became extremely useful in the diagnosis and treatment of many medical conditions. The Manhattan Project changed the course of history and change war forever, with countries now having nuclear weapons, human annihilation is possible in today’s
The Manhattan Project was a stepping stone for the United States of America, it would change the meaning of war forever. The development of the first Atomic bomb would put America in the lead, surpassing our enemies in World War II. The Project was one of the most secretive projects in the history of The United States and was a turning point in the history of twentieth-century science. This new bomb had the potential of nuclear annihilation and was also one of the most costly top secret projects, costing little over 2 billion dollars. We will examine how the United States got its hands on the projects, the decision on when and how to use the bombs, and the after math of dropping the bombs.
It all started with key experiments …show more content…
President Roosevelt no longer being in office, President Truman was now in charge of making this decision. While President Truman was in Potsdam, Germany, he was informed that the Trinity Test had been a complete success, delighted with the good news he was sure he could bring the war to a quick end, whilst saving the lives of thousands of American soldiers. In Order to make his decision President Truman had committees of experts advising him on the matter. One committee in specific was the Interim Committee, this committee was composed of top scientist, and military and government officials including Secretary of War Henry Stimson, General C. Marshall, Enrico Fermi, and J. Robert Oppenheimer (McKain). The committee unanimously recommended that the atomic bomb be used against Japan as soon as possible and without warning. President Truman ultimatum for Japan to surrender was the last hope of avoiding the use of the atomic bomb. When Japan didn’t surrender, President Truman signed the order to drop the bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. The bomb which was called ‘Little Boy’ Bomb, was carried in the B-29 Enola Gay plane piloted by Lieutenant Colonel Paul W. Tibbets (Hughes). With fear from the bomb exploding when taking off, William Parsons was order to go on the plane and finish …show more content…
Nearly 4 years after the United States dropped the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Soviet Union detonated theirs. While some scientist deeply regretted their involvement, some scientist and government officials were in favor of going one step further. One of the scientist that regretted his involvement was Albert Einstein, after pictures of Hiroshima and Nagasaki reached the United States. He wrote in 1954 “I made one great mistake in my life, when I signed a letter to FDR recommending atom bombs to be made.” If he would’ve known that the Germans would not succeed in producing an atomic bomb, he would have never lifted a finger. Despite the nuclear arms reduction agreements between the United States and Russia, the spread of these weapons of mass destruction has increased. However, after World War II, nuclear energy found many beneficial uses. The first nuclear power plant began operating in 1957. Radioactive isotopes became extremely useful in the diagnosis and treatment of many medical conditions. The Manhattan Project changed the course of history and change war forever, with countries now having nuclear weapons, human annihilation is possible in today’s