father of the atomic bomb

on a cool October day in 1945 Dr J Robert Oppenheimer arrived at the White House in Washington DC A 30inute meeting had been scheduled with President Harry S Truman A meeting that could shape the course of history That morning Dr Robert Oppenheimer was making an attempt to reason with the president He had just led a team of scientists in developing and testing a weapon that helped bring about the end of the Second World War Now he was desperate to prevent the world from destroying itself After the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Oppenheimer had followed military developments with deep concern He felt compelled to personally share his fears about this devastating new weapon with the American president The events of October 25th 1945 marked a turning point in history But the story began years earlier with Hitler's invasion of Poland in 1939 which triggered the Second World War As German forces advanced across Europe European immigrate physicists working in the United States learned that their counterparts in Berlin were experimenting with nuclear fishing Fearing its potential as a weapon they approached Albert Einstein and persuaded him to collaborate in writing a letter warning President Franklin D Roosevelt The letter raised the alarm that Nazi Germany might be the first to develop an atomic bomb In response Roosevelt mobilized US resources to stay ahead By executive order he created the Manhattan Engineer District placing atomic research at the center of the American war effort To lead this unprecedented project the army appointed General Leslie Groves a seasoned officer who had recently overseen construction of the Pentagon in Washington DC a significant military achievement Under Groves the Manhattan Engineer District grew rapidly employing 75,000 Americans Its structure was compartmentalized to protect secrecy and maintain focus Groves knew he needed a brilliant scientist someone who could lead with vision rally the nation's top minds and drive progress at a record pace After careful consideration General Groves arrived at his decision I was completely responsible for the selection of Dr Oppenheimer as the head of the Los Alamos Bomb Laboratory Dr Oppenheimer already knew many of the top scientists and physicists of the era He had the charisma intellect and leadership skills needed to unite them behind a single mission When Groves and Oppenheimer met for the first time their top priority was finding a remote location for a secret laboratory where the scientist could live and work around the clock in complete isolation Oppenheimer suggested a place in northern New Mexico where he had spent time with his family He had hiked the hills ridden horses through the terrain and even leased a simple cabin there He remembered a nearby ranch school set on a mesa It seemed ideal The two men drove out to see it The old school grounds had solid infrastructure access to water and room for expansion Groves turned to Oppenheimer and said "This is it." The property was quickly secured for the government and work began immediately on guardouses and roads Oppenheimer started assembling a team of top scientists engineers and experts from across the country A laboratory was built and structures began to rise almost overnight Hundreds of workers and support staff arrived The guard house soon became a hub of activity Scientists came with their families Among them was Oppenheimer's wife Catherine known as Kitty who was his confidant and constant companion Kitty welcomed new arrivals organized social events and became the de facto first lady of Los Alamos As research advanced military planners began searching for a nearby location to test the world's first atomic bomb The test site needed to be far from populated areas and inaccessible to the public A location north of Alamagordo New Mexico was selected It lay in a desert known as the Yordana del Muto Spanish for Journey of the Dead The area had already been secured by the military and used for bombing practice Eyewitnesses later recalled that Oppenheimer played a key role in selecting the site He reportedly slept under a truck during the search and seemed more at ease in the desert than many of his colleagues Over time a small base camp rose from the barren terrain Oppenheimer named the site Trinity Several buildings were constructed at the test location including barracks and a canteen There was even a pool table for the workers When the bomb was finally ready for testing a tall steel tower was built The idea was to detonate the device above ground to better observe and measure its effects By late April 1945 Allied forces had retaken most of Germany and were closing in on Berlin Berlin soon fell and the entire country came under Allied control German soldiers surrendered and many members of the Nazi regime were captured American intelligence teams recovered a vast trove of secret military documents After Germany's surrender US intelligence agents rushed to the Pinamunda rocket facility where Vera Fon had led the development of the German V2 rocket In a nearby cave American troops discovered 14 tons of technical papers and hundreds of rocket components But the agents uncovered an even greater secret that the Germans under Fon Brown's supervision had been developing a rocket intended to strike New York City Alongside tons of rocket components technical drawings and documents the American troops discovered that Dr Fon Brown and his team of German scientists were working on the development of longrange weapons that might one day reach transatlantic targets This research they realized could be of great benefit to the US military The findings were quickly relayed to President Truman who ordered all materials and the scientists to be secured and shipped to the United States without delay The US military acted swiftly transporting the rocket parts and equipment technical documents and more than 100 German scientists and their families including Verafon Brown to the United States The Pentagon decided the best location for this top secret cargo was the New Mexico desert near the atomic test site Almost overnight New Mexico became the focal point of global attention It was now home not only to Los Alamos and the Trinity test site but also the center of a newly planned rocket testing range Although the Allies now control Germany and much of Europe Japan continued to fight fiercely in the Pacific theater In the weeks following Germany's surrender a conference of Allied leaders was planned to address Europe's post-war administration and to coordinate the final stages of the war against Japan The meeting was scheduled to begin on July 17th 1945 in Pottsdam and later became known as the Pottsdam Conference Truman's Secretary of War Henry Stinson who received daily updates on the Manhattan Project was aware that the first atomic bomb test was imminent Stimson requested that President Truman authorize an accelerated timeline for the test in the desert of New Mexico so that its outcome could align with the opening of the Potdam Conference If the test proved successful Truman could enter the conference with news of a powerful new weapon as leverage for his negotiations with the Allies Truman agreed to the accelerated timeline and instructed General Groves to notify the Los Alamos scientists that the test must occur before the Potdam meeting meaning no later than July 16th Dr Oppenheimer called a meeting at Camp Lodge in Los Alamos The scientist agreed that with full cooperation across all departments the test could be moved forward Enriched plutonium was prepared in the Los Alamus lab ahead of the test Under Oppenheimer's supervision the plutonium was loaded onto military vehicles It was then driven south through New Mexico arriving hours later at the Trinity site 340 km away With great care the components were assembled at the test site The plutonium core was inserted into the bomb nicknamed the gadget Under Oppenheimer's watchful eye the team completed the final assembly In the tower above men were prepared to lift the bomb using hoists While those below worked the pulleys the team at the top monitored the process using mirrors Once the bomb reached the top the floor was sealed and technicians wired and inspected the device to ensure the test could proceed as planned Oppenheimer notified General Groves that the test was ready for July 16th Groves relayed the news to President Truman who was already at the conference in Potam On the morning of the test light rain and distant lightning threatened a delay But the skies eventually cleared At 5:29 a.m on July 16th 1945 the world's first atomic bomb was detonated in the New Mexico desert The atomic age had begun The United States now possessed a weapon capable of ending the war and compelling Japan to surrender News of the successful test was sent immediately to President Truman in Potam via Coded Telegram The message read "Doctor has just returned most enthusiastic and confident that the little boy is as husky as his big brother." A New York Times reporter who was part of the official observation group later described the moment as if he were present when God created the first light General Groves recorded in his classified report that the bomb test was probably more important than the discovery of electricity Back at the control room the scientists reacted with a mix of awe and unease One of them remarked "We are probably now all sons of bitches." Cigarettes and beer were passed around in subdued celebration The explosion had been audible from 160 km away To avoid public alarm a press release was issued claiming that a munitions depot had accidentally exploded Just hours after the successful test the USS Indianapolis set sail from San Francisco heading for the Pacific island of Tinian On board were components and plutonium for a second bomb intended for use against Japan Meanwhile with news of the test in hand President Truman showed a noticeable shift in confidence at Potdam As the conference continued all Allied leaders were briefed on the new weapon and its likely deployment in the Pacific theater Truman felt particularly strengthened in his interactions with Churchill and Stalin By the end of the conference all of the allies had been informed about the new bomb and its imminent deployment in Japan I told uh Stalin about the atomic explosion which had been set off on 16th day of July down in Alamagardo New Mexico and uh explained to him that we had the most powerful explosive that had ever been discovered in the history of the world and that we expected to use it on Japan He smiled at me and bowed and said he was glad we had the explosive and he hoped that it would end the Japanese war Back in New Mexico Oppenheimer General Groves and the scientists visited the blast site Their hard work had paid off The experiment had worked Oppenheimer returned to Los Alamos exhausted but reflective He began to consider the bomb's next use Should there be a demonstration first should the Japanese be warned and urged to surrender what would his colleagues think now that the theoretical had become real the sight of the Los Alamus guard house was a welcome relief He was home at last Soon after returning Oppenheimer convened a meeting of the scientific team to address the ethical concerns that had emerged in the Oakidge and Chicago Manhattan project sites Many scientists signed a petition urging the president that Japan should first be given the opportunity to surrender and that the weapon should only be used as a last resort More than 20 years later Oppenheimer recalled what he and his colleagues thought at the time I think that it probably was assumed it certainly was always assumed at Los Alamos that if the war were not over and not clearly to be brought to a conclusion by diplomatic means uh this weapon would play a part Um I'm not sure that the men who sat around that room all had the same idea of what would happen with the bomb General Groves blocked the petition and the scientist's effort to reach Truman directly The president then issued the order The first atomic bomb would be dropped on Japan By then the Indianapolis had reached Tinian Island The bomb cenamed little boy was carefully unloaded from the ship and transported to a hanger On the eve of the mission military technicians rolled the bomb out to the waiting aircraft Tensions spread among the crew Rumors had circulated that this was the weapon that could end the war After several hours of careful preparation the bomb was loaded into the Boeing B29 aircraft Just before dawn the Anola Gay took off for Hashima A few hours later on the morning of Monday August 6th 1945 the first atomic bomb ever used in warfare was dropped on Hiroshima This is the only known authentic footage of the explosion a blast that caused unprecedented devastation Meanwhile the final assembly of the second bomb on Tinian Island was nearing completion A tactical and operational flight order detailed the timing logistics and other elements of the mission Cenamed Fat Man the bomb was similar in design to the Trinity device On August 8th it was carefully removed from the hanger and prepared for the mission It was first painted with a sealant Then it was armed and transported to the runway for looting Once again a B-29 bomber was carefully prepared and brought into position It took off at dawn On August 9th 1945 the second atomic bomb was dropped over Nagasaki The city had been chosen as a secondary target due to poor weather conditions The Japanese military could offer only minimal resistance Within a single month three atomic bombs were detonated at Alamorgo Hiroshima and Nagasaki The world was forever changed The overwhelming destruction led to the expected surrender of Japan bringing the Second World War to an end Following the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki Robert Oppenheimer and his fellow scientists came under growing scrutiny facing difficult questions about the ethics and long-term implications of their work I remember that we first responded to the question what do scientists think by saying that they think a variety of things and this is only natural uh on the one hand they hoped this instrument would never be used in war and therefore they hoped that we would not start out by using it On the other hand they hoped or other people hoped that it would put an end to this war save countless lives put an end to it It would have come out sooner or later in a congressional hearing if nowhere else just when we could have dropped the bomb if we didn't use it And then uh knowing American politics you know as well as I do that there been elections fought on the basis that every mother whose son was killed after such and such a date uh the blood is on the head of the president The question was whether we wanted to save our people and Japanese as well and win the war or whether we want to take a chance on being able to win the war by killing all our young men As peace returned celebrations erupted across the United States The war was over and the American public welcomed victory with relief and pride Dr Robert Oenheimer became a household name for his role in creating the atomic bomb and helping to end the war Meanwhile President Truman saw the weapon as a powerful tool to strengthen his position both at home and on the global stage and particularly visav the Soviet Union With encouragement from his military advisers he began to pursue a strategy of expanding US military dominance through nuclear superiority The bomb had changed not just warfare but the direction of American military policy as the war was shaping up and they were seeing that you know with almost certainty they were going to be able to make these bombs um my grandfather in particular Neils Boore's influence started turning their thoughts towards could this power of of these weapons end all war That's what they started thinking about not you know are we going to make these bombs and then control these bombs themselves but they saw that there was a change in humanity the way humanity kind of relates to each other because such powerful technology has been made that you could end humanity if you have a total war And that was something that the scientists really started focusing on And that also furthermore there was a way to control that and the military side and the government and the political side was not caught up to that They were kind of still thinking of these things like musketss or cannons We have a weapon let's make as many weapons as we can and we'll be more powerful and that's good Um but the scientists in particular my grandfather Neils Boore and some of the other scientists thought that the significance of of of this particular type of technology is that we would have to work together in humanity in a new way because if we didn't it would inevitably end in an arms race and then using the weapons against each other and destroy everything And it it turning towards that problem is what he did while simultaneously finishing his duty and his work that he had to do which was fight a war He was in a war like everybody else Meanwhile General Groves had received a top secret memo from the US Army Air Force's headquarters dated September 15th 1945 The document laid out plans to begin immediate mass production of atomic weapons This was in direct opposition to what Oenheimer had hoped for The memo identified the Soviet Union as the likely future adversary An optimum strike the memo continued would target 66 cities of strategic importance which would require 204 nuclear bombs enough to destroy the country By the fall of 1945 it was clear that the military wanted to rapidly expand its nuclear arsenal and this message was passed directly to President Truman At the same time growing discontent was spreading among many scientists at Los Alamos who had not expected such escalation Dr Oppenheimer who presumably was aware of the memo and the planned production of 204 atomic bombs was deeply concerned Scientists at the lab urged him to take action and deliver their concerns directly to the Secretary of War and to the president A recently uncovered memorandum describing a September 24th 1945 meeting reveals the mounting tension among those who had built the bomb It noted there is a distinct opposition on their part to doing any more work on any bomb Not merely a super bomb but any bomb Oppenheimer asked George Harrison assistant to the Secretary of War to arrange a meeting with President Truman as soon as possible He still believed that open dialogue between scientists political leaders and nations could help contain the role of nuclear weapons in future conflicts When General Groves learned of the resistance at Los Alamus he quickly moved to divide the scientists into two separate groups One group would continue with non-military research The other would work on new atomic weapons To build 204 bombs the military needed a larger facility that could operate around the clock Los Alamos was no longer adequate Plans were drawn up for a new base near Albuquerque called Sandia There bomb design and production would continue Storage bunkers were included in the plans In October 1945 two key military developments took place in New Mexico The first was the departure of the 509th Composite Group the same unit that had dropped the bombs from Tinian Island for their new posting at Walker Army Air Base in Roswell The base was designed to support B-29 bombers and prepare them for atomic missions The Anola Gay which had bombed Hiroshima was part of this transfer Colonel Patrick Henry Sanders was the assistant base commander His daughter Susan still recalls the importance of the Roswell Airbase The importance of Roswell was it was the only nuclear strike force base