The Last Time

Atomic bomb dropped — hopefully for the last time — 75 years ago today

It’s been three-quarters of a century since the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The attack on Hiroshima was first. On Aug. 6, 1945, the crew of the U.S. B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay, acting on an executive order by President Harry S. Truman dropped a 8,900pound bomb codenamed “Little Boy” on Hiroshima, a city of 350,000.

The force of the bomb’s explosion was equal to somewhere between 13 and 18 kilotons of TNT. About 80,000 were killed immediately and another 50,000 or so would die within the next four months from the effects of radiation and other related causes.

The second bombing was Aug.

9 — 75 years ago today — on the port city of Nagasaki. The U.S. B-29 Superfortress Bockscar dropped the bomb codenamed “Fat Man” on the city. Anywhere from 45,000 to 75,000 died that day, with thousands more to follow in the months ahead.

By Aug. 12, Emperor Hirohito had decided to surrender. There were some behind-the-scenes negotiations until Aug. 15, when the emperor made the announcement via radio.

Over the years, President Truman’s decision to use atomic weapons has been debated, defended and criticized. But we did not instigate World War II — Japan brought us into the war when it bombed Pearl Harbor. We did not intend to sacrifice so many brave Americans in war, the Axis powers forced us to do so. By the time the bombs were dropped, we had a choice to end the war quickly or face heavy American—and even heavier Japanese—casualties from a full scale invasions of the Japanese islands. Because we used atomic bombs countless more lives were saved than were lost at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

In the 75 years that followed, the word has come to brink of nuclear war, but the line has never been crossed. We can all be thankful for that. Let’s hope the bombs of August 1945 were the last we’ll ever see.