Developed by American scientists, the atomic bomb, codenamed "Kid", was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, completely destroying it and taking the lives of more than 150 thousand people. The international community is now celebrating this date as the World Day for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
Preparation
Hiroshima is located in the western part of one of the largest Japanese islands - Honshu. This city was not chosen by chance. First, it was of great military importance. The headquarters of the 2nd Army was located here, which was responsible for the defense of all of southern Japan. In addition, Hiroshima was a communications center and a transit point for Japanese troops. Secondly, most of the population lived in the densely built-up city center, and the structures of most of the houses were lightweight. This suggests that Hiroshima was an easy target for the fire.
The final decision on the bombing was made in July 1945, at the same time the Indianapolis cruiser delivered the Kid to Tinian, one of the islands of the Mariana archipelago in the Pacific Ocean. The crew was instructed and trained there, and by early August everything was ready for the operation. The Americans were biding their time for favorable weather.
On the morning of August 6, the B-29 "Enola Gay" carrier aircraft with an atomic bomb on board took off. Ahead of him flew 3 weather scouts, at some distance followed an aircraft with equipment that was supposed to register the parameters of the explosion, and another bomber, whose purpose was to photograph the consequences.
Japan's missile defense system tracked American bombers. But the air raid was canceled, as the radar operator determined that the number of aircraft flying up was very small. People continued to go about their business, no one went down to the shelters. Japanese fighters and anti-aircraft artillery also did not oppose the enemy.
Nuclear explosion
Reaching the city center, the bomber dropped a small parachute, and the planes quickly flew away. All watches, found then in the wreckage of the city, stopped at 8 hours 15 minutes. It was at this time that the "Kid" exploded with a deafening roar at an altitude of about 576 km, leaving behind destroyed houses and widespread fires, covering the city with a huge cloud of dust and smoke.
The bomb's power was 20 thousand tons of TNT equivalent. This was enough to destroy 60% of the city in an instant. Buildings and structures located within a radius of 2 km from the epicenter of the explosion were completely destroyed, within a radius of 12 km - more or less partially destroyed. People died and received burns within 9 km. The temperature from the explosion of the atomic bomb reached 4000 ° C. All living things that got into the epicenter of the explosion just turned into steam. Fire waves and radiation instantly spread in all directions, creating a stream of super-compressed air, which left behind only coals and ash.
To this day, the controversy surrounding this terrible tragedy, which claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, does not subside. In 2007, Japanese Defense Minister Fumio Kyuma stepped down after a wave of public outrage. He stated that the atomic bombing was necessary to end the war and prevent the USSR from penetrating into Japanese territory, and therefore he does not hold any grudge against the Americans.
