The Atomic Bomb

In 1939, a vision was put into motion with the creation of the atomic bomb. The atomic bomb was going to be the answer to the end of World War II and the final factor that would solidify the United States as a true superpower. With the creation of the atomic bomb, no one would stand in the way of the United States. The United States became the "New Rome," and with the power of the Atomic Bomb behind them, no other nation stood in their way.

"My God, what have we done?" - Robert Lewis, the co-pilot of the Enola Gay, the B-29 that dropped the first atomic bomb.

On August 2, 1939, just before the beginning of World War II, Albert Einstein wrote a letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Einstein and several other scientists told Roosevelt of efforts in Nazi Germany to purify uranium-235, which could be used to build an atomic bomb. It was after that letter was delivered that the United States began the project, known then only as, "The Manhattan Project." The Manhattan Project was devoted to increasing research that would produce an atomic bomb. ("World War II: The Atomic Bomb")

Over the course of six years, from 1939 to 1945, more than $2 billion was spent on the Manhattan Project. The formulas for refining uranium and putting together a working atomic bomb were created by some of the greatest minds of all time. One of the scientists among the people who discovered the power of the atom bomb was J. Robert Oppenheimer, who was the director of operations for the project. Oppenheimer also gave the test day for the atomic bomb the code name, Trinity. He would also later be head over the Atomic Energy Commission.

On July 16, 1945, all of the scientists working on the Manhattan Project met at Los Alamos for the "Trinity Test" to find out if "The Gadget" ( the atomic bomb's code-named during its development) was going to be the biggest dud of the century or the biggest breakthrough of the century that would bring an end to the war and a new beginning for the United States. (Benson)

At 5:29:45 (Mountain War Time), in a white blaze that stretched from the bottom of the Jemez Mountains in northern New Mexico to the sky above, "The Gadget" brought the world to the Atomic Age with a bang. The light of the explosion turned orange as the atomic fireball began shooting upwards at 360 feet per second, reddening and pulsing as it cooled. The mushroom cloud of radioactive vapor materialized at 30,000 feet. Beneath the cloud, all that remained of the soil at the blast site were fragments of jade green radioactive glass created by the heat of the reaction. (Benson)

The bright flash of light from the detonation penetrated the morning sky with such intensity that residents from a faraway neighboring community thought that the sun came up twice that day. What is even more astonishing is that a blind girl saw the flash 120 miles away. (Benson)

Upon witnessing the explosion, the scientists, that had spent six years on the project, had mixed reactions. "Isidor Rabi felt that the equilibrium in nature had been upset -- as if humankind had become a threat to the world it inhabited. J. Robert Oppenheimer, though ecstatic about the success of the project, quoted a remembered fragment from the Bhagavad Gita. "I am become Death," he said, "the destroyer of worlds." Ken Bainbridge, the test director, told Oppenheimer, "Now we're all sons of bitches." ("World War II: The Atomic Bomb")

After viewing the results several participants signed petitions against releasing the atomic bomb they had created, but their petitions were of no use. The Jornada del Muerto of New Mexico would not be the last site on Earth to experience an atomic explosion. If fact, it was only the beginning.

The scientists who helped invent the Atomic Bomb under the Manhattan Project were, Robert Oppenheimer, David Bohm, Leo Szilard, Eugene Wigner, Otto Frisch, Rudolft Peierls, Felix Bloch, Niels Bohr, Emilio Segre, James Franck, Enrico Fermi, Klaus Fuchs, and Edward Teller. As important as these scientists are, none of them are as important as Albert Einstein, because it was his letter to President Roosevelt that created the urgency of the Manhattan Project. ("World War II: The Atomic Bomb")

In 1905, as part of his Special Theory of Relativity, Albert Einstein discovered that a large amount of energy could be released from a small amount of matter. This was expressed by the equation E=mc2 (energy = mass times the speed of light squared). The atomic bomb was a clear example of Einstein's equation. ("Albert Einstein")

But bombs were not what Einstein had in mind when he published this equation. "Einstein actually considered himself to be a pacifist" ("Albert Einstein"). In 1929, he publicly declared that if a war broke out he would "unconditionally refuse to do war service, direct or indirect... regardless of how the cause of the war should be judged." (Long). His position would change in 1933, as the result of Adolf Hitler's ascent to power in Germany. While still promoting peace, Einstein no longer an "absolute pacifist."

Einstein's greatest role in the invention of the atomic bomb was signing a letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt urging that the bomb be built. The splitting of the uranium atom in Germany in December 1938 plus continued German aggression led some physicists to fear that Germany might be working on an atomic bomb. Among those concerned were physicists Leo Szilard and Eugene Wigner. But Szilard and Wigner had no influence with those in power. So in July 1939 they explained the problem to someone who did: Albert Einstein. According to Szilard, Einstein said the possibility of a chain reaction "never occurred to me," although Einstein was quick to understand the concept. After consulting with Einstein, in August 1939, Szilard wrote a letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt with Einstein's signature on it. The letter was delivered to Roosevelt in October 1939. ("Albert Einstein")

"This is the text of the letter signed by Albert Einstein, which was delivered to President Franklin D. Roosevelt by Alexander Sachs on October 11, 1939. The author of the letter is believed to be Leo Szilard.

Albert Einstein

Old Grove Rd.

Nassau Point

Peconic, Long Island

August 2d, 1939

F.D. Roosevelt

President of the United States