What Really Happened During the Manhattan Project?

Summary

The Manhattan Project, a massive WWII effort involving 130,000 people and costing $2 billion, led to the creation of the first nuclear bombs. Fear of Nazi Germany's progress in nuclear fission technology spurred the Allies to develop 'Little Boy' and 'Fat Man,' which devastated Hiroshima and Nagasaki, killing over 450,000. The project's legacy is complex, raising questions about the ethics of such weapons and their role in ending the war.

Takeaways

• 😢 The Manhattan Project resulted in the creation of the atomic bombs 'Little Boy' and 'Fat Man', which were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, causing immense human suffering and death.
• 🔬 The project was initiated due to fears that Germany was close to developing a powerful nuclear weapon, leading to a race to develop the bomb first.
• 🌐 It was a massive international collaboration involving scientists from various countries, including defected German scientists who played a crucial role.
• 💡 The concept of nuclear fission, discovered by Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner, and Fritz Strassman, was the scientific foundation for the atomic bomb.
• 🏛️ The project was led by the U.S. military under the direction of General Leslie Groves, with Robert Oppenheimer as the scientific director, often referred to as 'the father of the atomic bomb'.
• 💸 The Manhattan Project was extremely costly, with an estimated cost equivalent to $25 billion in today's money, and involved around 130,000 people.
• 🔥 The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki resulted in over 450,000 casualties, showcasing the devastating power of nuclear weapons.
• 🌋 The bombs' detonations created temperatures exceeding a million degrees Celsius and left behind a mushroom cloud, symbolizing the destructive potential of nuclear warfare.
• 🌐 The success of the Manhattan Project and the bombings led to Japan's surrender, marking the end of World War II but also raising questions about the ethics of such weapons.
• ⚖️ The script raises the moral and ethical debate surrounding the development and use of nuclear weapons, a topic that continues to be relevant today.

Q & A

What was the Manhattan Project?

The Manhattan Project was a research and development program during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons, specifically the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Who were the key scientists involved in the discovery of nuclear fission?

The key scientists involved in the discovery of nuclear fission were Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner, and Fritz Strassman.

What is nuclear fission, and how was it related to the creation of the atomic bomb?

Nuclear fission is a reaction where a heavy nucleus, when bombarded by neutrons, becomes unstable and splits into two nuclei of equivalent size and magnitude, releasing a large amount of energy and additional neutrons. This process was harnessed to create the explosive power of the atomic bomb.

Why was there a sense of urgency and fear among the scientists working on the Manhattan Project?

There was a sense of urgency and fear because they believed that the Germans were also working on a similar project and could potentially develop a nuclear weapon first.

How many people were estimated to have worked on the Manhattan Project, and what was the approximate cost?

It is estimated that about 130,000 people worked on the Manhattan Project, which cost around $2 billion, equivalent to approximately $25 billion in today's currency.

What were the two atomic bombs dropped on Japan named, and how many casualties did they cause?

The two atomic bombs dropped on Japan were named 'Little Boy' and 'Fat Man'. They caused a total of 292,325 casualties in Hiroshima and 165,409 in Nagasaki.

Who was Robert Oppenheimer, and what was his role in the Manhattan Project?

Robert Oppenheimer was an American physicist who was appointed as the director of the Manhattan Project. He is often referred to as 'the father of the atomic bomb'.

What was the significance of the Enola Gay in the context of the Manhattan Project?

The Enola Gay was the U.S. B29 bomber that dropped the atomic bomb 'Little Boy' on Hiroshima, marking a pivotal moment in the use of nuclear weapons.

How did the scientists from different countries collaborate on the Manhattan Project?

Scientists from different countries, including those who had fled from Germany, collaborated on the Manhattan Project through shared research, information exchange, and by working together in various facilities under the project's umbrella.

What was the Potsdam Proclamation, and how did it relate to the use of atomic bombs on Japan?

The Potsdam Proclamation was a statement issued by the leaders of the United States, China, and the United Kingdom demanding Japan's surrender during World War II. Japan's refusal to surrender led to the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

What was the aftermath of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

The aftermath of the atomic bombings included massive destruction, loss of life, and long-term health effects from radiation. Japan surrendered shortly after the bombings, effectively ending World War II.

Outlines

00:00

💥 The Devastation of Atomic Bombs and the Manhattan Project

This paragraph recounts the harrowing experiences of a Hiroshima survivor on August 6, 1945, and introduces the Manhattan Project, which aimed to create a nuclear bomb. The narrative describes the aftermath of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, with a death toll exceeding 450,000. It highlights the shock and fear these events instilled globally, emphasizing the destructive power now in the hands of governments. The paragraph also raises ethical questions about the scientists who worked on such a project and sets the stage for a historical exploration by mentioning the origins of nuclear fission discovered by German scientists Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner, and Fritz Strassman.

05:01

🔬 The Manhattan Project: A Global Scientific Endeavor

The second paragraph delves into the complexities and the global collaboration behind the Manhattan Project, often referred to as 'Development of Substitute Materials.' It discusses the fear that drove the project, fueled by the belief that the Germans were close to developing a nuclear bomb first. The narrative outlines the significant contributions of scientists from various nations, including those who defected from Germany. It details the immense scale of the project, involving approximately 130,000 people and costing around $2 billion, equivalent to $25 billion today. The paragraph also describes the technical challenges, the construction of factories and labs, and the development process that led to the creation of the bombs. It concludes with a brief overview of the bomb's design and the historical context of its use, ending with the surrender of Japan and a reflection on the moral implications of such weapons.

Keywords

💡Manhattan Project

The Manhattan Project was a research and development program during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with participation from the United Kingdom and Canada. The project's name is used in the script to describe the efforts that culminated in the creation of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The script mentions the project as the central theme, highlighting its historical significance and the ethical debates it sparked.

💡Nuclear Fission

Nuclear fission is a nuclear reaction in which the nucleus of an atom splits into smaller parts, releasing a large amount of energy. In the context of the video, nuclear fission is the process that was harnessed to create the destructive power of the atomic bombs. The script explains that the discovery of nuclear fission by Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner, and Fritz Strassman was a pivotal moment that led to the development of nuclear weapons.

💡Uranium-235

Uranium-235 is an isotope of uranium that can be used as fuel in nuclear reactors and in the creation of nuclear weapons. The script mentions that U-235 was one of the key materials used in the Manhattan Project because it was more effective for sustaining a chain reaction necessary for an atomic bomb. The production and use of uranium-235 exemplify the scientific and engineering challenges faced during the project.

💡Enrico Fermi

Enrico Fermi was an Italian physicist known for his work on induced radioactivity and the discovery of the nuclear chain reaction. In the video script, Fermi is referred to as 'the architect of the nuclear age' due to his significant contributions to the understanding of nuclear reactions. His work was foundational to the development of the atomic bomb and the broader field of nuclear physics.

💡Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Hiroshima and Nagasaki are the two cities in Japan that were targeted and destroyed by atomic bombs during World War II. The script describes the devastating aftermath of the bombings, which resulted in a significant loss of life and long-term effects on the environment and survivors. These bombings are central to the narrative of the Manhattan Project and serve as a stark reminder of the destructive power of nuclear weapons.

💡Little Boy and Fat Man

Little Boy and Fat Man were the code names for the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectively. The script uses these terms to refer to the specific warheads that were developed as part of the Manhattan Project. These bombs symbolize the culmination of the project's efforts and the tragic consequences of their use.

💡Robert Oppenheimer

Robert Oppenheimer was an American physicist who directed the Los Alamos Laboratory during the Manhattan Project. He is sometimes referred to as 'the father of the atomic bomb', as mentioned in the script. Oppenheimer's leadership and scientific expertise were crucial to the development of the first atomic weapons, and his later reflections on the moral implications of his work are part of the historical legacy of the project.

💡Nuclear Chain Reaction

A nuclear chain reaction is a self-sustaining process in which a large number of nuclear reactions are initiated by neutrons released from fission. The script explains that Fermi's work on nuclear chain reactions was instrumental in the development of the atomic bomb. The concept is central to understanding how the bombs functioned and the immense energy they released.

💡Potsdam Proclamation

The Potsdam Proclamation was a statement issued during World War II, which called for the surrender of Japan. The script mentions this proclamation in the context of the events leading up to the use of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The proclamation is significant as it represents the diplomatic efforts to end the war before the deployment of nuclear weapons.

💡Enola Gay

The Enola Gay was the name of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. The script refers to this aircraft as the vehicle that carried out the historic and devastating bombing. The Enola Gay is a symbol of the technological capabilities and the military strategy of the time, as well as a focal point for discussions on the ethics of warfare.

💡Mushroom Cloud

A mushroom cloud is the characteristic cloud formation that results from a large explosion, particularly a nuclear explosion. The script describes the mushroom cloud that rose after the atomic bomb was detonated over Hiroshima, emphasizing the visual and environmental impact of the explosion. The term 'mushroom cloud' has become synonymous with the destructive power of nuclear weapons.

Highlights

Survivor's harrowing account of the atomic bomb's immediate aftermath in Hiroshima.

The Manhattan Project's true objective: developing a nuclear bomb.

The devastating impact of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, with casualty figures.

The Manhattan Project's global collaboration and the race against the perception of German advancement.

The pivotal role of nuclear fission in the development of the atomic bomb.

The Manhattan Project's leadership, including Robert Oppenheimer and General Leslie Groves.

The scale of the Manhattan Project, with approximately 130,000 people involved and a cost of $2 billion.

The fear driving the Manhattan Project and the misperception of Germany's progress in nuclear weapons.

The process of creating the raw materials for the atomic bomb and the construction of necessary factories and labs.

The dropping of the first atomic bomb from the Enola Gay and the conditions at the point of explosion.

The scientific process behind the atomic bomb's detonation, likened to a gun mechanism.

The political context of the Manhattan Project, including the Potsdam Proclamation and Japan's refusal to surrender.

The swift surrender of Japan following the atomic bombings and the end of World War II.

The moral and ethical implications of the Manhattan Project and the use of nuclear weapons.

Robert Oppenheimer's reflection on his role in the development of the atomic bomb.

The lasting legacy of the Manhattan Project and its impact on global politics and the arms race.

Transcripts

“My arms were badly burned and there seemed to be something dripping from my fingertips…

I saw a schoolgirl with her eye hanging out of its socket.

People looked like ghosts, bleeding and trying to walk before collapsing…

I looked down and saw a man clutching a hole in his stomach, trying to stop his organs

from spilling out.

The smell of burning flesh was overpowering.”

That’s an answer to the question of “What happened after the Manhattan Project.”

It is a description of what one survivor of the atomic bomb said happened right after

the bomb hit his home town of Hiroshima in the morning of August 6th, 1945.

We are sure you now know what this project was all about: creating a nuclear bomb.

Three days after the Hiroshima blast and the city of Nagasaki was hit.

In all, reports tell us these two warheads, named “Little Boy” and “Fat Man”,

killed in total 292,325 in Hiroshima and 165,409 in Nagasaki.

The devastation was unapparelled; the world had never seen such destruction, and the scientists

working on the Manhattan Project had done their job well.

The Allied politicians and military men rejoiced, the upstart Japan was shocked to its core,

sent down to its knees; it was a disturbing coup de grace at the end of the second world

war, a death blow and a warning of things that might come.

That warning remained in people’s minds for years; we are still aware of what power

governments possess to wipe out masses of populations with the push of a button, but

thankfully we no longer sit on our sofas chilled to the bone as some TV program tells us what

to do when the strike comes.

Thankfully the powers that be know very well that any kind of nuclear attack is a zero-sum

game, tit for tat, everyone loses.

We might now ask the question, what were those guys thinking when they decided to work on

a project that could possibly end with large parts of humanity being blitzed from existence?

That’s what we are going to answer today.

It actually all started in Germany, because it was there that three very clever men called

Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner and Fritz Strassman discovered nuclear fission.

What does that mean?

Well, it’s basically…er…we will let a scientist explain:

“Nuclear fission is a reaction wherein a heavy nucleus is bombarded by neutrons and

thus becomes unstable, which causes it to decompose into two nuclei with equivalent

size and magnitude, with a great detachment of energy and the emission of two or three

neutrons.”

There is a crude term for this and that is “splitting the atom”.

All that energy released can be a dangerous thing, as described by the Japanese man who

witnessed carnage all around him on that dark day in ’45.

Anyway, after this discovery the word on the lab concourse was that it could possibly be

used to make a bomb, a very powerful bomb.

The Germans were on it, and word got out to the Allied powers that some scientists over

there were working on creating “extremely powerful bombs of a new type.”

But to cut a long story short, scientists all over the place were aware of the potential

of creating a big bomb using nuclear fission.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt got a team together, and it was agreed that uranium was

needed because it could “provide a possible source of bombs with a destructiveness vastly

greater than anything now known.”

They knew this because an Italian man called Enrico Fermi had been working on nuclear chain

reactions.

He is sometimes called “the architect of the nuclear age.”

It was discovered that uranium isotopes called U-235 and U-238 could be used for the fission

needed to create the explosion, but the former was better.

Over in Britain they had their own project to create the atomic bomb, and that was led

by an Austrian scientist called Otto Frisch and a German-born British man called Rudolf

Peierls.

We don’t want to bombard you with lots of names, but you should know the making of the

atomic bomb was a massive collaboration and not some eureka moment for some lone wolf

messing about with isotopes in a dimly-lit lab.

Over in the UK they thought they had discovered a way to actually create such a bomb small

enough to be carried by a bomber plane.

This was big news and it didn’t escape the Americans.

In the U.S. they soon discovered that the British atomic bomb project was bigger and

more advanced.

Britain then told America that it could have access to any of its scientists and scientific

research relating to the atomic bomb, but the problem for a while was that this research

didn’t always get to the right people in the USA.

It was actually an Australian physicist Mark Oliphant who managed to visit the states and

say, “Hey, physicists, there is a lot of stuff you just haven’t seen that those whinging

Poms have been working on.”

We doubt he said it like that, but soon enough anyway the American physicists had a lot to

work with.

Ok, so we will have to cut a very long story into a shorter story.

So, we know lots of people were collaborating on this project from many places, and we know

there was a very real fear that the Germans were ahead.

Let’s now think of the USA coming in and corralling all these scientists so they could

communicate and work under one roof.

This was by order of the President and the military would take control of the project.

Not that politicians or military men knew much about nuclear fission, so an American

physicist called Robert Oppenheimer was made director.

He is sometimes called “the father of the atomic bomb”, but as we said, this was a

complicated endeavor and there was no one inventor.

This project was codenamed “The Manhattan Project” by the American military, but also

had the official codename of “Development of Substitute Materials.”

One of those names would stick.

The race was on.

This is how General Leslie Groves and the Chief of Foreign Intelligence for the Manhattan

Project explained why this race was so important, “The Manhattan Project was built on fear:

fear that the enemy had the bomb, or would have it before we could develop it.

The scientists knew this to be the case because they were refugees from Germany, a large number

of them, and they had studied under the Germans before the war broke out.”

Another leading scientist on the project said this, “I think everyone was terrified that

we were wrong, and the Germans were ahead of us.…

Germany led the civilized world of physics in every aspect, at the time war set in, when

Hitler lowered the boom.

It was a very frightening time.”

The thing is, all these people couldn’t have been further from knowing the truth.

They were leaps ahead of the Germans, and that’s partly because they had some of the

best German scientists who had defected on board.

Still, the Manhattan Project had to be huge and it was costly.

It’s said in all about 130,000 people worked on it and it cost about $2 billion.

That might not sound like much but it would be somewhere in the region of $25 billion

in today’s money.

For the Germans and the Allies the problem was creating something out of extremely difficult

to create raw materials that could be dropped from the sky and then detonated.

This was no easy task, and huge factories and labs had to be built to make it a reality.

As one German scientist said after he heard about Hiroshima, it must have taken “factories

large as the United States to make that much uranium-235!"

Just so you know, the first bomb was dropped by a parachute from a U.S. B29 bomber called

Enola Gay.

The bomb exploded 600 feet above the ground.

At the point of explosion the air temperature was around one million degrees Celsius.

On the ground at the hypocenter the temperature was between 3,000 and 4,000°C. A mushroom

cloud rose about 10,000 feet, a fascinating thing to see to some people from far away,

but below lay the ruins of a Japanese city and its scorched and dead inhabitants.

A few minutes before that, lots of people were said to be looking up at the sky wondering

what those bombers were doing.

We tell you this because in the 1940s this is exactly what the scientists were trying

to create.

For years materials were collected and scientists worked on how to create this bomb.

In 1942, two plants built reactors to create plutonium and also electromagnetic, centrifuge,

and gaseous diffusion plants were built to produce uranium-235.

In 1943, raw materials were very much being created, but then bomb design had to be thought

about.

In 1944, bomb models were tested and later that year dummy bombs called Pumpkins were

dropped in tests.

In early 1945 leaders Roosevelt, Churchill, and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin all met to

discuss the imminent end of the war.

Not long after and the American leader died.

His last words were, “I have a terrific headache.”

A few months later and a plutonium implosion bomb was tested in New Mexico.

The new President Truman then told Stalin that America had an ace in the hole, a bomb

like no other.

On July 26th President Truman, Chinese President Chiang Kai-Shek, and the new British Prime

Minister Clement Atlee issued the Potsdam Proclamation to Japan, asking that the country

give up the fight and surrender.

A few days later and Japan replied.

“No.”

As you know, on August 6th Little Man was dropped and three days day later Nagasaki

was hit.

On August 14th Japan surrendered.

That’s the end of the Manhattan Project, a multi-lingual, global project that cost

a ton of money and human life.

In case you’re wondering how all that science fitted into one place at the end of the day,

it goes a bit like this.

The bomb dropped on Hiroshima acted a bit like a gun.

It was tube-shaped with half of a nuclear charge at one end and the other half (the

moving part) at the other end.

A normal explosive charge was put behind the moving part and you might say that was the

near end of the barrel.

When the charge was detonated, the bullet went down the tube and hit the charge at the

other end, sometimes called a “spike”.

Then the two halves of the nuclear materials were brought together and held together, and

the result of this was a chain reaction.

The fuel became what’s called supercritical, and the explosion came next.

The Manhattan Project was both a success and a bloody wart on the history of mankind.

Some might say these weapons of mass destruction might have prevented other wars, but that’s

a debate we are not going to get into today.

We will leave you with the words of Oppenheimer.

“I have become death, the destroyer of worlds.”

That’s maybe a lot to take in.

What do you think about this project and what do you think about what happened in Japan

or nuclear weapons in general?

Tell us in the comments.

Also, be sure to check out our other show Nuclear vs Hydrogen Bomb.

Thanks for watching, and as always, don’t forget to like, share and subscribe.

See you next time.