The Beginning
1939-1945 Einstein wrote to President Roosevelt in 1939 informing him about Nazi experiments with uranium. The result was the U.S. began the Manhattan Project led by Robert Oppenheimer who is considered the father of the atomic bomb. |
Using the Bomb, and ending WW II - 1945
The U.S. bomber, Enola Gay, dropped Little Boy, on Hiroshima August 6th, 1945. "Around 66,000 died instantaneously. The total reported number of deaths – from burns and radiation – varies from 90,000 to 166,000. Little Boy's brother, Fat Man, was dropped on Nagasaki three days later, killing 40,000 at once. On the 10 of August, the Japanese surrendered." - Anthony Pearce |
The Cold War
1946-1969 The Cold War between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. was a tense competition between the two nations. It created the atomic arms race to see who could get more weapons faster. Everyone was afraid of nuclear annihilation. |
Nuclear Disarmament
1970-1990 After the Berlin wall fell, the Cold War was over and tensions between the super powers eased. "The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty came into force in 1970, aiming to limit the powers with nuclear weaponry to five. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament argued for a more radical approach and gained widespread support. However, India, Pakistan and Israel all declined to sign the treaty, continuing to develop nuclear weapons." - Anthony Pearce |
Currently
1991... "In 2003, North Korea became the first country ever to withdraw from the Non-Proliferation Treaty, as a US-led invasion of Iraq searched for weapons. Iran has continued to defy UN sanctions, with 21st-century nuclear policy increasingly dominated by the fear of 'rogue states' developing weapons." - Anthony Pearce |