August 6, 1945, 7:15 AM: 60 minutes before the atomic bomb is dropped on Hiroshima. The skies are clear over southern Japan. Colonel Paul Tibbets, Jr. pilots the Enola Gay towards a target blissfully unaware of the catastrophe about to be unleashed over their heads. The crew of the modified B-29 is silent as they prepare to drop a bomb that promises to create the most powerful explosion ever used in war. “We are approaching our target,” Tibbets says. “Arm the weapon.” In the cargo hold of the Enola Gay Captain William Parsons prepares the atomic bomb for drop. Right after take off, he put the final piece of the Little Boy bomb together. Now he checks one last time to make sure that the device detonates at the appropriate altitude. A bead of sweat trickles down the side of his face. Even though what he is doing is relatively safe, there is still the thought that one wrong move could make the B-29 Ground Zero for an atomic explosion. Tibbets pulls up on the flight stick and ascends to an attacking altitude of 31,000 feet. The higher he can get the plane, the more time he’ll have to evacuate the area before the bomb reaches its detonation altitude. He waits for the all-clear from the two B-29s that have accompanied the Enola Gay on the mission for reconnaissance. One of the aircraft is scouting over the primary target of Hiroshima; the other is conducting surveillance over the secondary targets of Kokura and Nagasaki. The radio aboard the Enola Gay crackles as the signal comes in. “Weather over the primary target is all clear. Proceed to Primary Target.” Colonel Tibbets adjusts his heading ever so slightly and continues towards Hiroshima. 8:00 AM: 15 minutes before the atomic bomb is dropped on Hiroshima. Colonel Tibbets speaks to his crew. “Target is in sight. Prepare to drop the bomb.” The 12 men on the aircraft say their final prayers and think about their loved ones. This is the first time an atomic bomb has been dropped from a plane. It is unclear if the bomb will work properly or if there will be enough time to get the Enola Gay out of the blast zone before detonation. This may very well be the last time any of the crew will have the luxury of reminiscing about their families and friends. Tibbets maneuvers the aircraft into striking position. 8:12 AM: 2 minutes before the atomic bomb is dropped on Hiroshima. “I’m transferring command to you, Ferebee,” Tibbets says over his headset. Major Thomas Ferebee, the Enola Gay’s bombardier, sits at the front of the aircraft. He can see the city of Hiroshima below through the glass of the plane’s nose. From the Pedestal Gun Sighting Station, Ferebee shouts out slight adjustments that need to be made to the aircraft’s trajectory. Tibbets makes the modifications as Ferebee calls them out. He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. A moment later, the bombing run begins. Ferebee has the Aioi Bridge lined up perfectly; this is the precise target for the drop. “Everyone put on your protective goggles,” Tibbets says over the radio. Ferebee looks through the viewfinder one last time before donning his headgear and preparing to drop the atomic bomb. 8:15 AM: the atomic bomb is dropped on Hiroshima. “Bomb’s away!” Ferebee yells into his headset. The bomb bay doors open, and the Little Boy atomic bomb plummets toward the ground. Tibbets immediately banks hard into a turn. He pushes the engines of the Enola Gay to their limit. They roar under the strain of extra thrust; the entire fuselage creeks as the plane rapidly turns away. It is a race against time. Every second that ticks by brings the explosion of atomic energy closer and closer. Tibbets grits his teeth, willing the Enola Gay to move faster. 30 seconds to detonation. The plane’s engines glow red from burning at full power. The crew braces themselves. 15 seconds to detonation. Sargent Bob Caron, the Enola Gay’s tail gunner, squints through his goggles. He will be the only member of the crew able to see the initial blast as the bomb goes off. This is not an honor Caron is sure he wants. 3… 2… 1… There is a bright flash of light. Caron shields his face with his forearm. His eyes are closed, but when he opens them, he can hardly believe what he sees. “It is like a peep into hell,” Caron says over the radio. There is a somber silence. January 1939: 6 years before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. Lise Meitner and Otto Frisch, two Jewish scientists fleeing Nazi Germany, have been following a discovery made by two scientists named Irène Joliot-Curie and Pavle Savić working out of France. They have determined that by bombarding uranium with neutrons, a transformation can take place that has the potential to release huge amounts of energy. Meitner and Frisch are desperate to make it to Cohepenhegan before another Great War breaks out, both to save their lives and share what they’ve learned with other scientists. It is in Denmark that they meet with a brilliant physicist by the name of Neils Bohr. Bohr is about to leave for the United States and is excited to share the new discovery brought to his attention by Meitner and Frisch with the scientists there. He discusses the transformation and the resulting release of energy with Albert Einstein and other scientists in the U.S. After their meeting, the group of researchers announces their findings. It is determined that by striking uranium-235 or plutonium-239 atoms with neutrons, the nucleus can be split into fragments, resulting in a huge burst of energy. This process has been termed fission by Meitner and Frisch and lays the foundation for what would one day become the atom bomb. June 1940: 5 years before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. “When fission occurs, there is a chance that neutrons are released, and a sustained chain reaction will happen,” Enrico Fermi says to Neils Bohr as they smoke pipes in a university classroom. The two scientists are working on the equations necessary to harness nuclear energy and change the world. “If that’s true,” Bohr replies, “this process may be more powerful than we could have ever imagined. Scientists in the United States continue to work on the prospect of atomic energy. Slowly the secrets of the atom and the process of fission become clearer. By the end of the month, the basic facts about nuclear energy are known by most scientists around the world. The race to harness the power of the atom has begun. December 1941: 4 years before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. “Yesterday, December 7, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by the naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.” President Franklin Delano Rosevelt addresses Congress and the people of the United States. The attack on Pearl Harbor thrust the United States into World War II. This single event will lead to millions of lives lost during the War in the Pacific. The conflict will end with two Japanese cities being decimated and the area around them covered in radioactive fallout for years to come. September 1942: 3 years before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. General Leslie R. Groves is placed in charge of the Manhattan Project, named after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Manhattan District based at Columbia University. The atomic program spans the country, but the Manhattan Project has stuck as a code name for the top secret project as it is where it all began. For a while now, a scientist by the name of J. Robert Oppenheimer has been deeply involved in the efforts to develop the atomic bomb. General Groves has taken note of Oppenheimer’s enthusiasm. “How would you like to lead the team of scientists working on the bomb?” Groves asks. Oppenheimer pauses for a moment to think about what this could mean. He has been working tirelessly to help the government achieve its goals and further the scientific understanding necessary to achieve a working atomic bomb. What the general is offering him would change everything. He would be directly responsible for the success of the project. “It would be an honor, general,” Oppenheimer says as he shakes Groves' hand. In the coming years, Oppenheimer will lead the team that creates a weapon which could literally end the world. December 2, 1942. “Everyone stand back and be prepared to shut it down if something goes wrong,” Enrico Fermi says to his team. They stand on a platform, looking down on a squash court. The court sits under the bleachers of Stagg Field at the University of Chicago. On the court itself is Chicago Pile No. 1. “Do we think it wise to initiate a nuclear reaction under the football field?” one of the researchers asks. Everyone pauses. “This is for science, for the United States, and for the future of humanity,” one of the physicists sitting at the control panel says. There is agreement. The switch is flipped. The reactor begins to hum. Neutrons begin bombarding the fuel rods in the reactor. A self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction begins within Chicago Pile No. 1. Atomic energy is released, plutonium is created, all of the theoretical science done up until this point around atomic energy has been experimentally proven. A scientist takes one of the rods out of the reactor. He runs a Geiger Counter over it. The machine rapidly begins to click. It is clear that a huge amount of radiation has been generated, but the ramifications of this byproduct are not yet known. January 1943: 2 years and 8 months before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. General Groves smiles as he reads progress reports sent by Oppenheimer. They are getting close, really close. The government has chosen a 580-square-mile parcel of land in Washington State to generate the plutonium needed to construct an arsenal of atomic bombs. The only problem is there are people living on the land that Groves wants. However, this is an easy fix. He is backed by the United States government and, at this point, has been given the go-ahead to do whatever it takes to make the bomb. The local population of Hanford, Richland, and White Bluffs are ordered to vacate their homes. They have 90 days to do so, or the military will be sent in to encourage them to make the right choice. Groves won’t let a few holdouts stop him and the Manhattan Project from getting the resources they need to complete the bomb. Along with the entire populations of these towns, the Wanapum Native Americans are forced to relocate. They are sent to Priest Rapids and lose access to their ancestral fishing grounds along the Columbia River. This is just another egregious mistreatment of the people who are native to this land by the United States government. The U.S. government suppresses as many outcries as they need to in order to complete the construction of their facility. It is a matter of national security that the Hanford Engineer Works be built to supply the military with plutonium. To Groves and the other high-ranking officials that are aware of the Manhattan Project, a few thousand unhappy citizens and Native Americans is a small price to pay for the fate of the entire world. April 1943: 2 years and 4 months before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. Oppenheimer sifts through several different maps looking for the perfect locations to carry out the first test of an atomic bomb. The Hanford facility is remote, but not as remote as he would like. Using fission to create an atomic blast has never been done before, and it is not clear exactly how destructive the explosion will be. According to some calculations, there is a very small chance that the atomic blast could ignite the oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere and cause the entire planet to become a raging inferno. But Oppenheimer and his team on the Manhattan Project are almost positive that won’t happen. The risk of possibly destroying the planet is outweighed by their thirst for knowledge and the ability to wipe their enemies off the face of the Earth. “That’s the spot,” Oppenheimer says, pointing to a map of New Mexico with his index finger. He has chosen a remote region on the Los Alamos mesa. It is 34 miles south of Santa Fe and in the middle of the desert. This should be isolated enough to conduct the necessary tests without anyone finding out what they are doing. Engineers begin arriving at the newly dubbed Los Alamos Laboratory. The first task is to create a bomb that can hold the appropriate amount of fissionable material, be dropped from a plane, and has a fuse that will detonate at the appropriate altitude. This all needs to be done before the team can ramp up its stores of fissionable material. If they don’t have a delivery method, there is no point in reducing the fissionable products being sent to New Mexico from plants such as the Hanford Engineer Works into pure metal. Every week more and more scientists, engineers, and technicians arrive at Los Alamos. By the time of the first test, there will be around 5,000 people at the site. April 12, 1945: 4 months before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. The nation mourns. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt has just passed away. Many are in shock. In the President’s last address, he looked old and frail while seated at his desk. However, his declining health had been kept a secret from the general public. Now they have to contend with the fact that their leader for over a decade will not see them through World War II. Germany will surrender in less than a month, but there is still the Japanese threat in the Pacific. Less than 24 hours after FDR’s death, the United States' new President, Harry S. Truman, is sworn in and briefed on the Manhattan Project and the progress of the atomic bomb. July 16, 1945, 5:29 am: 21 days before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. Sirens wail across Los Alamos. The Trinity test is about to begin. Gadget, the first atomic bomb to ever be tested, hangs 100 feet above the sand of Alamogordo Bombing Range. Oppenheimer glances at his watch. The experiment will commence in the next 45 seconds. When the timer hits zero, the plutonium implosion device will detonate, and the largest man-made explosion that has ever been created will possibly destroy the planet. 30 seconds until detonation. Military officials, scientists, and engineers are at observation points between 5 and 10 miles away from Ground Zero. They are ordered to lie on their stomachs with their heads pointed away from the bomb. Everyone in attendance gets down on the ground, puts on their protective goggles, and waits for the countdown to reach zero. This is the moment they have all been waiting for. If the test succeeds, the United States will have the most powerful weapon the world has ever known. 15 seconds until detonation. The skies are dark. Rain falls on the parched desert sands. Lightning illuminates the sky in the distance. It is the perfect day to test a doomsday weapon. Gadget detonates. At 5:29 and 45 seconds, the bomb is triggered. There is a blinding flash of light that illuminates the mountain peaks ten miles away. All is quiet for a brief moment; then, there is the deafening sound of the explosion. Hurricane-force winds sweep across the test site, blowing sand and debris over the desert. After several seconds observers throughout the area turn toward Ground Zero. A 40,000-foot mushroom cloud rises up into the sky. Where the tower once stood is now only a crater with a glassy jade-colored mineral covering the surface. This substance would later be named trinitite. As far as 50 miles away, people report seeing the explosion. Citizens phone the authorities, asking what happened out in the desert. Windows of houses 125 miles away shatter. Residents in Gallup, New Mexico, 180 miles from Alamogordo Bombing Range, say they felt the ground shake. Later, the government will release a brief statement to the press giving an explanation for the large explosion and the phenomena associated with it: “A remotely located ammunition magazine containing a considerable amount of high explosives and pyrotechnics exploded, but there was no loss of life or limb to anyone.” This is clearly a lie, but the government can’t let anyone know what has just occurred at Los Alamos. The atomic bomb must remain a secret until the opportune moment when the U.S. military is ready to unleash its power on their enemies. Oppenheimer stands with his mouth open, staring at the aftermath of the weapon of mass destruction he played an integral role in creating. A line from a Hindu passage passes through his thoughts. “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” The mushroom cloud continues to grow larger and larger. July 16th, late afternoon. Top military officials receive a communication stating that the atomic bomb test at Los Alamos has been a success. The weapon is everything they hoped for and more. Military leaders have been grappling with the reality of what is unfolding in the Pacific. Japan will not give up. It seems as if the only way to end the war is by invading the home island itself. This is estimated to result in 1.7 to 4 million U.S. casualties. The number is staggering, but it may be the only way to force the Japanese leadership to surrender. Now there is another option. The United States can use its newest and most powerful weapon to force Japan’s hand. An order is sent to military bases on the West Coast that have components for several atomic bombs stored at their facilities. They are to begin shipping the parts of the bomb to an island within striking distance of Japan. Early that evening, the USS Indianapolis leaves San Francisco. On board the ship is a gun assembly mechanism for detonating the atomic weapon, about half of the U.S. supply of uranium-235, and several Los Alamos scientists who will oversee the construction of the bombs. The rest of the United States stockpile of uranium-235 is loaded onto a transport plane and flown to Tinian Island. This is where everything will come together before a nuclear attack is launched against Japan. July 26, 1945: 11 days before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. The USS Indianapolis reaches Tinian Island. Assembly of Little Boy begins. Later when the plutonium arrives by aircraft, the construction of Fat Man starts. The Big Three: Truman, Churchill, and Stalin are at the Potsdam Conference in Germany when Truman receives a message reporting the successful test of the atomic bomb at Los Alamos. Truman leans over to Stalin. “I’ve just received word that U.S. scientists have created a new weapon of unusual destructive force,” he says. “The time for a Japanese surrender is at hand.” Stalin hesitates for a moment. His own scientists have been working around the clock to harness the power of the atom and make their own bomb. He is slightly annoyed that the U.S. beat him to it. “Very well,” Stalin replies. “Let’s contact Tokyo. The Big Three issue an ultimatum to Japan. It states that they either surrender unconditionally or face “prompt and utter destruction.” There is no response to their request. After dropping off the components for the bombs, the Indianapolis departs for the Philippines, where it will continue to aid in the war effort. Four days later, it is sunk by the Japanese submarine I-58. 900 out of the 1,200 sailors survive the attack and float in the dark Pacific waters. The men are accidentally stumbled upon by U.S. ships four days later. Only 316 men survived. It is theorized from first-hand accounts and the carnage left in the water that hundreds of men were attacked and eaten by Oceanic white-tipped sharks while they waited for rescue. August 2, 1945: 4 days before the atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. It has been decided that the United States will not launch a land invasion of Japan but will force them to surrender by using their newest weapon instead. No one except the highest-ranking U.S. officials and scientists present at the Trinity test knows the power of the atomic bomb. However, no one can predict the destructive power and the deadly aftermath of the bomb, as this will be the first time anything like it has been used in warfare. The collateral damage will be immense, but the U.S. feels it needs to send a clear message in order to get the Japanese leadership to end the war. The U.S. military is watching the weather over Japan. They are waiting for the opportune moment to carry out their attack. The targets have been narrowed down to Kokura, Hiroshima, Niigata, and Kyōto. Although Kyōto was at the top of the list, Secretary of War Henry Lewis Stimson pleaded with President Truman to reconsider due to its historical and cultural significance. Truman agrees; Kyōto is swapped out for Nagasaki. August 6, 1945, 2:30 am: 5 hours and 45 minutes before the atomic bomb is dropped on Hiroshima. Colonel Paul Tibbets walks around the B-29 that will be flown to Japan to drop the atomic bomb named Little Boy. His crew has gathered and made final preparations. Tibbets stops at the nose of the plane and looks at the hull. “George, can you come over here for a second?” asks Tibbets. A maintenance worker walks over to the plane. Tibbets whispers something into his ear. The maintenance worker leaves and comes back with stencils and paint. He gets to work writing something on the nose of the aircraft. After a few minutes, he steps away. Tibbets smiles at his mother’s name that is now painted on the hull of the aircraft. 2:45 am: 5 hours and 30 minutes before the atomic bomb is dropped on Hiroshima. Tibbets pushes the throttle forward. The engines of the B-29 Superfortess, now named the Enola Gay, roar to life. The aircraft picks up speed as it races down the runway. Tibbets pulls back on the flight stick; the plane rises into the air. It is a little unwieldy due to the modifications made to the craft, which allow it to carry and drop atomic bombs. A few seconds after lift-off, Tibbets feels a slight dip, and his stomach sinks. He makes a few adjustments; the plane begins to climb again. He breathes a sigh of relief. However, he knows the hardest part is yet to come. Moments later, two other B-29s take off from the airfield on Tinian island. They will provide reconnaissance on the targets for the Enola Gay to make sure that the conditions are right to drop the bomb. They will also be used to film the detonation of the atomic device and the immediate aftermath. Once the Enola Gay levels off, Captain William Parsons begins adding the final components to Little Boy. This was not done prior to takeoff because several of the modified B-29s crashed during test flights. A major concern is that if a B-29 crashes with a fully assembled bomb on board, it might detonate and wipe out the entire military base on Tinian Island. This might serve as a demonstration of the destructive power of the atomic bomb, but not in the way the United States had hoped for. Therefore, the atomic bomb aboard the Enola Gay was not to be fully assembled until the B-29 was in the air and a safe distance away from the base. “We are good to go, Colonel,” Parsons says over the radio once he finishes preparations on Little Boy. “Roger that,” Tibbets confirms. He continues to fly towards the home island of Japan. 8:15 am: 1 second before the atomic bomb detonates over Hiroshima. Little Boy falls to an altitude of 1,900 feet. The gun assembly device fires and critical mass is achieved when the uranium projectile strikes the uranium target within the bomb. This results in the initiation of a chain reaction. Atoms split; neutrons are ripped from their nuclei. This creates a massive amount of energy resulting in an atomic explosion directly over the Shima Hospital in Hiroshima. When the bomb detonates, the temperature directly below the blast reaches 12,600 degrees Fahrenheit or around 7,000 degrees Celsius. Everything within the vicinity is immediately incinerated, including people, vehicles, and buildings. The blast wave levels any structures within its radius, destroying around two-thirds of the city. Out of the 343,000 inhabitants living in Hiroshima, around 70,000 are killed almost instantly; another 30,000 will be dead within the year from severe burns and radiation poisoning. All the remains of anyone caught in the thermal radiation blast is their nuclear shadows imprinted on the stone structures of Hiroshima. Their bodies shielded the stone from the radiation, keeping it from being bleached by the intense heat and leaving an imprint of their body forever etched into the rock. As the Enola Gray speeds away, it is rocked by the shockwave of the atomic bomb. “Hold onto something!” Tibbets yells over the headset. The crew is restrained to their seats by safety harnesses; if they had not been wearing them, they would have been tossed around the fuselage like pinballs. Tibbets clutches the flight stick tightly with both hands. He adjusts the angle of the B-29 to level the plane out. Moments later, the air is still once again. Tibbets climbs to cruising altitude and begins the journey back to Tinian Island. 8:18 am: 3 minutes after the atomic bomb detonated over Hiroshima. The mushroom cloud from the blast rises higher and higher into the air, reaching 40,000 feet above the ground. Less than 2% of the uranium contained within Little Boy achieved fission, yet the destruction is utterly unbelievable. The bomb released the equivalent of more than 15,000 tons of TNT on the city of Hiroshima. A member of the Enola Gray’s crew looks back at the destruction from a window. “Good God, what have we done?” he says into his headset. For a minute, there is only silence. “We saved American lives,” someone responds. “But at what cost?” a third voice says. The crew is silent for much of the journey back to base. 8:15 pm: 12 hours after the atomic bomb detonated over Hiroshima. The Enola Gay touches down at Tinian. Upon disembarking, the crew is greeted by cheers and applause. Colonel Paul Tibbets is awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions. Four hours later, President Harry Truman addresses the American people. “Sixteen hours ago, an American airplane dropped one bomb on Hiroshima, an important Japanese Army base. That bomb had more power than 20,000 tons of TNT.” Some listeners shake their heads in dismay. Others are terrified of what this weapon could be used for in the future. And yet the majority smile at the awesome power that the United States now wields. Truman continues: “It is an atomic bomb. It is a harnessing of the basic power of the universe. The force from which the sun draws its power has been loosed against those who brought war to the Far East.” The world has changed forever. August 8, 1945: 1 day before the atomic bomb is dropped on Nagasaki. As news of the destruction of Hiroshima circulates around the world, people grapple with the consequences of such a powerful weapon. It is almost incomprehensible. Some in the Japanese leadership claim that since their own atomic program has stalled due to difficulties in procuring materials, perhaps the United States only had that one bomb. Others argue it is time to reach a settlement with the U.S. and its allies. Advocates for surrendering note that if the United States could build and drop one atomic bomb, it is only a matter of time before they can do it again. At this point, the Soviet Union has yet to declare war on Japan. It is proposed by some Japanese officials that Stalin might be willing to mediate negotiations between the United States and Japan. However, before anything can become of such an idea, the Soviet Union declares war. Their forces push into Manchuria and Sakhalin Island. Japan will receive no help from the Soviets, only death and destruction. August 9, 1945, 3:47 AM: 10 hours and 15 minutes before the atomic bomb is dropped on Nagasaki. The United States still has not received word of a Japanese surrender. There is growing unease as Soviet forces move closer and closer to the main island of Japan. U.S. leadership worries that if the Soviet Union invades and forces a surrender, they may claim Japan and much of the territory it conquered during the war for their own. The United States cannot let this happen. The Bockscar, a B-29 loaded with the Fat Man atomic bomb, takes off from Tinian and proceeds toward Japan. Major Charles Sweeney is at the controls. The bomb the Bockscar carries is more powerful than the one dropped on Hiroshima. It is plutonium-fueled and similar to the bomb detonated during the Trinity test at Alamogordo Bombing Range. While taking off, Sweeney is particularly careful. Unlike the Little Boy bomb, Fat Man is already completely assembled in his cargo hold. Once the plane is safely in the air Commander Frederick Ashworth arms the bomb. Again, two other B-29s accompany the Bockscar on their mission to ensure that the targets are visible. At the time of take-off, clear skies with light haze are reported over the primary target of Kokura. Sweeney pilots the plane toward this destination. 9:45 AM: 1 hour and 17 minutes before the atomic bomb is dropped on Nagasaki. “I can’t see anything,” Sweeney exclaims over the radio. The weather over Kokura has deteriorated. Visibility of the city below is nearly zero. This may have been caused by the firebombing runs conducted on the nearby city of Yahata the night before. “I’m circling around for another pass,” Sweeney says. On the second time around, the city below is still covered by haze and clouds. There is no way to tell where the target is and when to drop the bomb. “Can anyone see anything?” Sweeney shouts as he circles back for one more pass, hoping that there is a break in the overcast skies. Their target is a massive arsenal that contains large stores of weapons and explosives that the Japanese desperately need if they are going to mount a defense of their home island. The destruction of the target makes sense in the scheme of the war. But if the crew of the Bockscar can’t sight it, they could hit the wrong part of the city and leave the arsenal unharmed. Sweeney checks the fuel gauge. They have been circling above Kokura for nearly 45 minutes. The clouds have not cleared. Time is slowly slipping away. “I’m calling it off,” Sweeney says over the radio. There is an eerie stillness throughout the aircraft as the crew waits for the Major’s next decision. “We are moving to the secondary target. Prepare to drop the bomb over Nagasaki.” 10:58 AM: 4 minutes before the atomic bomb is dropped on Nagasaki. “Damn it!” Sweeney yells. “The cloud cover here is worse than at Kokura.” He looks out the cockpit window to try and identify any landmarks below. Captain Kermit Beahan is serving as bombardier on the mission and looks through his scope to try and locate the Mitsubishi arms plant. This structure is supposed to be their target in Nagasaki. “Beahan, you see anything?” Sweeney asks. “It’s bad, Major. All I can see is clouds.” Kermit Beahan responds. Sweeney glances at the fuel gauge again. We’re not going to make it, he thinks. “Major! I got something,” Beahan says over the headset. A clearing in the clouds has appeared in the northern part of the city. It is not their preplanned target, but it is close enough that the bomb will take out the arms plant in the blast. “Drop it!” Sweeney yells. 11:02 AM: the atomic bomb drops on Nagasaki. Fat Man falls to an altitude of 1,650 feet. The detonation mechanism triggers. The sub-critical plutonium core is surrounded by several thousand pounds of explosives. They are arranged in a way that when they detonate, the explosive forces are directed inward toward the plutonium core. The force of the explosion crushes the plutonium into a super-critical state, and a nuclear chain reaction commences. This type of atomic bomb creates a much bigger explosion than Little Boy. Fat Man goes off with the force of 21,000 tons of TNT. 40,000 people are instantly vaporized, and another 30,000 will die in the aftermath from radiation poisoning. 40% of the city’s buildings are destroyed. As the mushroom cloud erupts into the air, the shockwave strikes the Bockscar rattling the hull of the plane. Sweeney regains control and steers the craft further away from the spreading cloud of debris. Sweeney wipes sweat from his brow as he looks at the fuel gauge. There isn’t enough fuel to make it back to Tinian. He looks at a map and decides their best chance is to get to Okinawa to the south of Japan. The Island is under U.S. control, so if they can make it, it should be a safe place to land. The challenge is to reach the island before the Bockscar runs out of fuel and plummets into the choppy, shark-filled waters of the Pacific. Sweeney informs his crew of the new plan. Most are still in shock from the explosion they just witnessed. They had heard of the destructive power of the bomb, but seeing it first hand is different. Several hours later, a voice crackles over the radio. “This is Major Charles Sweeney of the Bockscar. We are coming in for an emergency landing.” “Roger that, Major,” responds flight control from Yontan Airfield on Okinawa. “The runway is all yours. You’re clear for landing.” Sweeney eases back on the throttle; the B-29 descends and touches down on the tarmac. The fuel needle gently rests on “E.” August 10, 1945: 1 day after the atomic bomb detonated over Hiroshima. Emperor Hirohito supports accepting the terms laid out by the Allies. The Japanese government releases a statement saying they will surrender but only if the Emperor is allowed to keep his position as sovereign ruler of the nation. The United States rejects this counteroffer and makes their position clear. They want the unconditional surrender of Japan, or there will be further consequences. President Truman is in constant communication with General Groves. “Yes, Mr. President, we already have another bomb ready for shipment. It should reach the Pacific in a matter of days,” says Groves. The President thanks him and has his military advisors draw plans for a third atomic bombing run on Japan. August 14, 1945: Japan surrenders. The Japanese government accepts the Allies' terms for unconditional surrender. The next day Emperor Hirohito is heard on every radio across the country. The pre-recorded message is played on every station. It is the first time Japan's people have heard their Emperor's voice in a long time. Tears are shed. Many can’t believe that Japan has been defeated; others refuse to accept it altogether. The future of Japan is uncertain, but one thing is clear: they will not be able to rule themselves for some time. The U.S. military will occupy Japan for the next seven years. September 2, 1945: The War in the Pacific officially comes to an end. The USS Missouris sits in Tokyo Bay. Its deck has been outfitted with a table and chairs. Resting on the table are the instruments of surrender. Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu and General Yoshijiro Umezu approach the table while U.S. officers and sailors look on. The documents are signed. World War II officially comes to an end. Cheers erupt around the world as the most bloody conflict in human history is now over. Fighting will continue sporadically throughout the Pacific until word can reach soldiers in the furthest reaches of the conflict that the war has ended. Astonishingly some will even continue fighting for decades. The last official surrender by a Japanese soldier occurs on March 9, 1974 when Lieutenant Hiroo Onoda finally hands over his sword in the Philippine Jungle. In the coming decades, the aftereffects of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan will come to light. Thousands will suffer from radiation poisoning. Countless civilians will die from cancer. The contamination of soil and water will last for years. It will be argued that the United States had to use the atomic bombs to force a Japanese surrender. That launching an invasion of the home island would have caused much more death and destruction than the bombs did. The other side will advocate for reparations, that the United States massacred innocent men, women, and children. They’ll say that using the atomic bomb was irresponsible. Regardless of which side is right, the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagaskai still remain the only two instances where nuclear weapons have been used in a war. Perhaps their sacrifice avoided an all-out nuclear holocaust during the Cold War to come. Now watch “What If Japan Was Never Hit By Nuclear Bombs.” Or check out “The Truth About Why America Dropped Atomic Bombs on Japan.”