Dropping the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima

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Dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima With the closing of the Second World War at hand, Harry S. Truman represented the United States in Potsdam Germany to decide the fate of a post war world. The key individuals in the conference consisted of the allied leaders, Soviet Premier Stalin, Prime Minister Churchill, and Truman. Dubbed the “big Three” in the second conference of the post war, they were charged with the daunting task of dealing with Japan and their continued effort in the ending war. The Potsdam Declaration was devised. It simply stated that Japan must immediately agree to an unconditional surrender or face total destruction. Japan would ignore this declaration (Scoenberger, 1969). In the summer of 1945, the war in the Pacific had dragged into its fourth year (Scoenberger, 1969). The amounted casualties and consumption of resources was enormous. Conventional bombing and ground forces are making little progress. The war was feared to last much longer. The Allies are looking toward a quick end to the last battles of the World War (Scoenberger, 1969). Japan showed no intention of surrendering or reaching an agreement of peace which was forcing the United States to look at new technologies. The United States had been looking into new weapons development throughout the war. Conventional bomb technology had seemingly reached an end state. The use of unconventional payloads was a new horizon. Started years earlier, a series of developmental projects were looking to use atomic energy as a weapon. The Manhattan project was one of the top secret test beds to develop the world’s first atomic bombs, “Fat Man” and “Little boy” (Hoddeson, 2009). The “Little Boy” would be used on Hiroshima. This was a gun type fis... ... middle of paper ... ... use of atomic weapons since these incidences. These events formed the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission. The National Academy of Science was also sent to conduct continued research on the after effects of radiation to the populous of both bombing sites (Truman). I am of the opinion that the use of atomic weapons in World War II and the subsequent studies enlighten the world on the new capabilities of weapon systems and delivery vehicles in the world. Without these tragic events, a much more catastrophic event may have occurred. History has set the stage for modern warfare, and currently the use of nuclear weapons is considered a last resort on a global scale. The world is entering a new age of warfare, with nation states and organizations engaging in non-standard conflict. The modern battle field cannot support these types of attacks. Tragic Lesson learned.

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