1. Decision to Drop the Bomb
What would you do?

2. Manhattan Project
Manhattan Project – top secret program to build atomic bomb in Los Alamos

3. Why the bomb was dropped?
Wanted to force Japan to surrender
Limited US causalities
Show military superiority to the USSR
Teach Japan not to be cruel to prisoners of War
Justify expense for building the A-bomb
Observe its effects

4. Why Hiroshima?
The size and topography of the city made it suitable for testing the destructive capabilities of the atomic bomb
There was a concentration of military troops, installations, and factories in Hiroshima that had been spared previous bombing

5. Little Boy Dropped Aug. 6, 1945 B-29 Bomber, Enola Gay
Wind caused the most immediate damage from bomb
It destroyed buildings within a 1.5 mile radius
140,000 dead
Long term suffering due to radiation and burns
Nuclear material: uranium 235

6. Fat Man Dropped on Aug. 9, 1945 B-29 Bomber, Bockscar 70,000 dead
Nuclear material: plutonium 239
Japanese forced to surrender

7. Damages Due to Blast Air pressure generated shock wave
Wind killed thousands
Windows shattered
All wood buildings in a 2 kilometer radius were destroyed

8. Damages Due to High Temp Fires
Heat rays caused anything burnable to burst into flames
Fires started by toppled kitchen stoves
Melted glass and metal

9. Damage due to Radiation
After effects of the bomb: Radiation and burns
Radiation effects extended for for months after the bombing
Radiations sickness: destruction of cells, disorders in internal organs, lower immune function, loss of hair
Got into well water to cause sickness
Those who did not directly experience the bomb were affected
Many still suffer today: scar tissue covering burns swelled and grew into mounds of thick twisted flesh called keloids

10. Long Term Effects Lung Cancer Colon Cancer Leukemia Thyroid
Breast cancer

11. Radiation and Burn Affects

12. Before and After

13. Alternatives to Dropping the A-bomb
Invade the Japanese mainland
Bomb and blockade the island
Wait for Soviet entry into the war
Hold demonstration for Japanese leaders on the power of the A-bomb

14. Pros v. Cons

15. http://www. trumanlibrary

16. Assignment
You are the President of the United States. You have just been informed about the Manhattan Project and the A-bomb. You now have a decision to make. You must decide how you want to end the war in Japan. In a 3/4 page single spaced 12 point Times New Roman font press release you must inform your fellow Americans of your decision. Include your reasons for or against using the A-bomb. Also include your plan of action. The websites on this page will give you more background on the Atomic Bomb
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