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The Atomic Bomb

The document discusses the development and impact of the atomic bomb during World War II, highlighting the scientific discoveries of nuclear fission and the Manhattan Project led by J. Robert Oppenheimer. It details the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which resulted in significant loss of life and ultimately led to Japan's surrender. The narrative emphasizes the dual nature of scientific achievement, showcasing both the solidarity in its development and the devastating consequences of its use.

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balaesh29
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26 views18 pages

The Atomic Bomb

The document discusses the development and impact of the atomic bomb during World War II, highlighting the scientific discoveries of nuclear fission and the Manhattan Project led by J. Robert Oppenheimer. It details the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which resulted in significant loss of life and ultimately led to Japan's surrender. The narrative emphasizes the dual nature of scientific achievement, showcasing both the solidarity in its development and the devastating consequences of its use.

Uploaded by

balaesh29
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Atomic

Bomb
In t r o
A great day for the US, A sad day for Japan.
For the world? We still don?t know. Did you
know that when the US dropped the atomic
bomb on Japan that ?more than 40 Million
people died?? ("Birth of the Bomb: Fifty Years
Ago This Summer, a Single Explosion
Changed the World Forever.). Although the
event of dropping atomic bomb was
devastating , The story behind it is also about
solidarity and achievement which I would like
to share below. I have also included a few
historic facts about the atomic bomb; some
of which may be a surprise to you.
Back gr ou n d
Now lets look at the background of
the atomic bomb, In the early
twentieth century, German scientists
discovered the splitting of a single
uranium nucleus. This is called
fission.These scientists found out that
under the right circumstances the
splitting of the nucleus can trigger a
chain reaction releasing lots of
energy. A kg of uranium has
2.56* 10^24 or billions and trillions of
atoms in it,capable of releasing
tremendous amounts of energy per
kilogram of uranium.
To give a sense this energy is about 2.5
million times more than the energy that
can be produced from 1 kg of coal. This
discovery started the possibility to build a
bomb that can release such huge energy
(atomic bomb) using a chain reaction.
WWII has coincidentally started. Feared
that Germany could create an atomic
bomb first and destroy other countries,
many German scientists fled to friendlier
heavens. In addition, they organized an
effort to contact Albert Einstein and
requested him to send a letter to
President Roosevelt to urge the
development of the atomic bomb. Einstein
signed a letter to the President on August
the 2nd 1939.
Fission
Before we find out what happened to the
letter, let's spend a few minutes on what
fission is. When an atom is split to
release energy, this process is called
fission. In a typical fission reaction, an
atom like uranium splits and releases
energy.When a neutron hits an uranium
235 atom, it splits into 2 other fission
products, krypton and barium. In
addition 3 other neutrons are released
which go to 3 more uranium 235 atoms
and split them. So as stated above, when
you have millions of trillions of atoms, in
just 1 kg of uranium, you can imagine the
tremendous amount of energy. The
energy from a fission reaction can be
used for constructive or destructive
Developm en t
In the 1940?s there was fear that fission
would be used for destructive outcomes,
now let?s look at what happened to the
letter sent by Einstein to Roosevelt.
Roosevelt was so impressed with the
letter that he set aside $6000 ($98,936 in
today's money) and formed a community
to develop the atomic bomb. This
became known as the Manhattan
project. The Manhattan project, which
was led by J. Robert Oppenhiemer. The
goal of the project was to make workable
atomic bombs.
Progress was slow as the research was
complex even though many people were
working on it.
As more of Europe was falling under
Germany's influence, more defense
organizations were being formed in US in
an effort to end the war. The US started to
pace up the research and development of
the atomic bomb.
Unknown to US and to many in Europe,
Germany was not making progress in this
area even though they had an early start.

Meanwhile, in a few years ?The first


controlled nuclear fission reaction was
carried out in Chicago on December 2,
1942 by Enrico Fermi and his team.?(The
atomic bomb). Because of many successful
tests, the project moved into its final stage.
During this time when all these
experiments were being conducted,
three secret cities were also constructed.
?The first, at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, was
devoted to the construction of the
world's first nuclear reactor and uranium
enrichment facilities. In contrast to the
second, at Hanford, Washington, which
was devoted to plutonium enrichment.
Unlike the third and most famous, at Los
Alamos, New Mexico, which became the
home base and where the final stage for
the design and development of the first
atomic bomb under the guidance of
scientist Robert Oppenheimer.?(The
atomic bomb) took place.
Fin al Test in g & Su ccess
Let?s take a look at the final testing and
success. Oppenheimer's team worked
tirelessly, eventually producing designs that
could be used to build prototype bomb for
testing. This prototype bomb was
nicknamed Gadget. This prototype was key
to creating the two atom bombs; The
six-foot-long, five-ton "Little Boy" bomb and
the the spheroid, three-ton "Fat Man" .

As these bombs were being constructed


in the summer of 1945, preparations
were made to test the technology in the
desert.
On July 16, 1945, after all this hard work,
the US tested the atomic bomb in an open,
isolated desert. This place was code
named the trinity test site. As a result of
the successful test, scientists were able to
complete the two atom bombs and make it
ready for military use.

?By the summer 1945, Germany and Italy


had surrendered to the United States
and its Allies. On the other hand, Japan
was not willing to surrender, despite
aggressive attacks from the United
States.
President Harry S. Truman (1884?1972;
served 1945?53), after issuing several
warnings and demands for surrender, gave
orders to use the atomic bomb as a military
weapon.?(The atomic bomb) On August 6th
1945 the POTUS gave orders to change
the world forever aka destroy japan with
the atomic bomb.
?The bomber Enola Gay dropped a
uranium bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. It
totally destroyed four square miles of the
city and killed more than fifty thousand
people. Then on August 9, 1945, a
bomber approached Japan. This time it
headed for the city of Nagasaki and
dropped a plutonium bomb. It destroyed
one-third of the city and killed more than
forty thousand people. The Japanese
surrendered days later.?(Manhattan
Project)
People
Now let's talk about 2 people. The first is J. Robert
Oppenheimer.J. Robert Oppenheimer
(1904?1967) was an American theoretical
physicist who created the world's first atomic
bomb in the mid-1940s. During World War II
(1939-1945), when the United States believed that
Nazi Germany was also researching atomic
energy, the U.S. government chose Oppenheimer
to work with a team of scientists to study the
bomb. . The top-secret nuclear program led by
Oppenheimer was known as the Manhattan
Project. Oppenheimer announced he built the
first ever atomic bomb in the summer of 1945,
and the indicated weapon was used against
Japan in the final stages of World War II a few
months later. For his work, Oppenheimer is often
acknowledged as the father of the atomic bomb.
He died in 1967 at the age of 62.
People
Now let's talk about 2 people. The first is J. Robert
Oppenheimer.J. Robert Oppenheimer
(1904?1967) was an American theoretical
physicist who created the world's first atomic
bomb in the mid-1940s. During World War II
(1939-1945), when the United States believed that
Nazi Germany was also researching atomic
energy, the U.S. government chose Oppenheimer
to work with a team of scientists to study the
bomb. . The top-secret nuclear program led by
Oppenheimer was known as the Manhattan
Project. Oppenheimer announced he built the
first ever atomic bomb in the summer of 1945,
and the indicated weapon was used against
Japan in the final stages of World War II a few
months later. For his work, Oppenheimer is often
acknowledged as the father of the atomic bomb.
He died in 1967 at the age of 62.
Conclusion
As we have seen above, our country made
history between 1939 and 1945 and created
something that was considered almost
impossible under difficult circumstances to
bring an end to World War II. We also
covered key ideas behind the atomic bomb,
its development, testing, key scientists and
the unfortunate incident of the atom bomb
detonation in Japan.

It is a great story of solidarity and


accomplishment. With each great
accomplishment like using the energy from a
complex chain reaction, mankind has the
opportunity to use it for greater good. Do you
agree ? What are your views about this?

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