US atomic bombing of Japan
 "Little Boy" (left) detonates on Hiroshima followed 3 days later by "Fat Man" on Nagasaki | |
| Date | 6 August 1945 - 9 August 1945 |
|---|---|
| Description | First – and only – deliberate deployment of nuclear weapons |
The US atomic bombing of Japan took place on 6 and 9 August 1945 when the United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectively, during World War II.[1]
Contents
Background
By July 1945, the Allies' Manhattan Project had produced two types of atomic bombs:
- "Little Boy", an enriched uranium gun-type fission weapon, and
- "Fat Man", a plutonium implosion-type nuclear weapon.
The 509th Composite Group of the US Army Air Forces was trained and equipped with the specialised Silverplate version of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, and deployed to Tinian in the Mariana Islands. The Allies called for the unconditional surrender of the Imperial Japanese armed forces in the Potsdam Declaration on 26 July 1945, the alternative being "prompt and utter destruction". The Japanese government ignored the ultimatum.
Target selection
On 25 July 1945, General Thomas T. Handy, the acting chief of staff of the US Army, ordered atomic bombs to be used on Hiroshima, Kokura, Niigata, and Nagasaki. These targets were chosen because they were large urban areas that also held militarily significant facilities.
On 6 August 1945, a "Little Boy" was dropped on Hiroshima. Three days later, a "Fat Man" was dropped on Nagasaki.
Casualties
Over the next two to four months, the effects of the atomic bombings killed 90,000 to 166,000 people in Hiroshima and 60,000 to 80,000 people in Nagasaki; roughly half occurred on the first day. For months afterwards, many people continued to die from the effects of burns, radiation sickness, and other injuries, compounded by illness and malnutrition. Despite Hiroshima's sizable military garrison, estimated at 24,000 troops, some 90% of the dead were civilians.
Can the bombings be justified?
Scholars have extensively studied the effects of the bombings on the social and political character of subsequent world history and popular culture, and there is still much debate concerning the ethical and legal justification for the bombings. According to supporters, the atomic bombings were necessary to bring an end to the war with minimal casualties and ultimately prevented a greater loss of life on both sides; according to critics, the bombings were unnecessary for the war's end and were a war crime, raising moral and ethical implications.[2]
Surprise attack by USSR
Published by Associated Press on 14 August 2010:
- As the United States dropped its atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, 1.6 million Soviet troops launched a surprise attack on the Japanese army occupying eastern Asia. Within days, Emperor Hirohito's million-man army in the region had collapsed.
- It was a momentous turn on the Pacific battleground of World War II, yet one that would be largely eclipsed in the history books by the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the same week 65 years ago. But in recent years some historians have argued that the Soviet action served as effectively as — or possibly more than — the A-bombs in ending the war.[3]
Related Document
| Title | Type | Publication date | Author(s) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Document:The Atomic Victims as Human Guinea Pigs | report | 1996 | Shingo Shibata | A seminal work on the motivations behind the dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. It is calm and meticulous in its documentation and explanation of the callous behaviour of the US Occupying Authorities towards survivors, clearly directed towards the gathering of scientific data at their considerable expense. Exposes the official narrative of the whole issue as a sham. |
References
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