home Medicines from A to Z Consequences after the atomic bomb in Japan. Japanese awareness of the consequences of the attack

Consequences after the atomic bomb in Japan. Japanese awareness of the consequences of the attack

The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, 1945 are two of the only examples combat use nuclear weapons.

The US military dropped on Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki 2 atomic bombs, killing over 200,000 people.

In this article we will look at the causes and consequences of this terrible tragedy of the 20th century.

Japan at the end of World War II

In their opinion, the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the only way quickly end the military conflict.

However, this is hardly true, since shortly before the Potsdam Conference he claimed that, according to data, the Japanese want to establish a peaceful dialogue with the countries of the anti-fascist coalition.

Therefore, why attack a country that intends to negotiate?

However, apparently, the Americans really wanted to demonstrate their military potential and show weapons to the whole world mass destruction which they have.

The symptoms of the unknown illness resembled diarrhea. The surviving people suffered from various diseases all their lives, and were also unable to reproduce full-fledged children.

Photos of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Here are some photos of Hiroshima and Nagasaki after the bombing, as well as the people injured in the attack:

View of the cloud of the Nagasaki atomic explosion from a distance of 15 km from Koyaji-Jima, August 9, 1945.

Akira Yamaguchi shows off his scars

Ikimi bombing survivor Kikkawa shows off his keloid scars

According to experts, 5 years after the tragedy occurred, total About 200 thousand people died from the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

In 2013, after a revision of the data, this figure more than doubled and was already 450,000 people.

Results of the atomic attack on Japan

Immediately after the bombing of Nagasaki, Japanese Emperor Hirohito announced immediate surrender. In his letter, Hirohito mentioned that the enemy had “terrible weapons” that could completely destroy the Japanese people.

More than half a century has passed since the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but the consequences of that terrible tragedy are still felt today. The radioactive background, which people did not yet know about, claimed many lives and caused various pathologies in newborns.

The role of atomic bombings in the surrender of Japan and the ethical justification of the bombings themselves still cause heated debate among experts.

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on the ground"

70 years of tragedy

Hiroshima and Nagasaki

70 years ago, on August 6 and 9, 1945, the United States bombed the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with atomic bombs. The total number of victims of the tragedy is over 450 thousand people, and the survivors still suffer from diseases caused by radiation exposure. According to the latest data, their number is 183,519 people.

Initially, the US had the idea of dropping 9 atomic bombs on rice fields or in the sea to achieve a psychological effect to support landing operations, planned for the Japanese Islands at the end of September 1945. But in the end, it was decided to use new weapons against densely populated cities.

Now the cities have been rebuilt, but their inhabitants still bear the burden of that terrible tragedy. The history of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the memories of survivors is in a TASS special project.

Bombing of Hiroshima © AP Photo/USAF

Ideal target

It was not by chance that Hiroshima was chosen as the target for the first nuclear strike. This city met all the criteria to achieve the maximum number of casualties and destruction: a flat location surrounded by hills, low buildings and flammable wooden buildings.

The city was completely wiped off the face of the Earth. Surviving eyewitnesses recalled that they first saw a flash of bright light, followed by a wave that burned everything around. In the area of the epicenter of the explosion, everything instantly turned to ashes, and human silhouettes remained on the walls of the surviving houses. Immediately, according to various estimates, from 70 to 100 thousand people died. Tens of thousands more died from the consequences of the explosion, and total number victims as of August 6, 2014 are 292,325 people.
Immediately after the bombing, the city did not have enough water not only to put out the fires, but also for people who were dying of thirst. Therefore, even now the residents of Hiroshima are very careful about water. And during the memorial ceremony, a special ritual “Kensui” (Japanese - offering water) is performed - it reminds of the fires that engulfed the city and the victims who asked for water. It is believed that even after death, the souls of the dead need water to alleviate suffering.

The director of the Hiroshima Peace Museum with his dead father's watch and buckle © EPA/EVERETT KENNEDY BROWN

The clock hands have stopped

The hands of almost all the clocks in Hiroshima stopped at the moment of the explosion at 08:15 am. Some of them are collected at the Peace Museum as exhibits.

The museum was opened 60 years ago. Its building consists of two buildings designed by the outstanding Japanese architect Kenzo Tange. In one of them there is an exhibition about the atomic bombing, where visitors can see personal belongings of the victims, photographs, and various material evidence of what happened in Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. Audio and video materials are also shown there.

Not far from the museum is the Atomic Dome, the former building of the Exhibition Center of the Hiroshima Chamber of Commerce and Industry, built in 1915 by Czech architect Jan Letzel. This structure miraculously survived the atomic bombing, although it stood only 160 meters from the epicenter of the explosion, which is marked by a regular memorial plaque in an alley not far from the dome. All the people inside the building died, and its copper dome instantly melted, leaving a bare frame. After the end of World War II, the Japanese authorities decided to preserve the building as a sign of memory of the victims of the bombing of Hiroshima. Now it is one of the main attractions of the city, reminiscent of the tragic moments of its history.

Statue of Sadako Sasaki in Hiroshima Peace Park © Lisa Norwood/wikipedia.org

Paper cranes

Trees near the Atomic Dome are often decorated with colorful paper cranes. They have become an international symbol of peace. People from different countries They constantly bring homemade figurines of birds to Hiroshima as a sign of mourning for the terrible events of the past and in tribute to the memory of Sadako Sasaki, a girl who survived the atomic bombing in Hiroshima at the age of 2. At the age of 11, she was found to have signs of radiation sickness, and the girl’s health began to deteriorate sharply. One day she heard a legend that whoever folds a thousand paper cranes will definitely recover from any illness. She continued to fold the figures until her death on October 25, 1955. In 1958, a statue of Sadako holding a crane was installed in the Peace Park.

In 1949, a special law was passed, thanks to which large funds were provided for the restoration of Hiroshima. A Peace Park was built and a fund was established to store materials about the atomic bombing. Industry in the city was restored after the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950 thanks to the production of weapons for the US Army.

Now Hiroshima is a modern city with a population of approximately 1.2 million people. It is the largest in the Chugoku region.

Zero mark of the atomic explosion in Nagasaki. Photo taken in December 1946 © AP Photo

Zero mark

Nagasaki became the second Japanese city, after Hiroshima, to be subject to American bombing in August 1945. The initial target of the B-29 bomber under the command of Major Charles Sweeney was the city of Kokura, located in the north of the island of Kyushu. By coincidence, on the morning of August 9, there was heavy cloudiness over Kokura, so Sweeney decided to turn the plane to the southwest and head to Nagasaki, which was considered as a backup option. Here the Americans were also waylaid bad weather, however, a plutonium bomb called "Fat Man" was eventually dropped. It was almost twice as powerful as the one used in Hiroshima, but inaccurate aiming and the local terrain somewhat reduced the damage from the explosion. Nevertheless, the consequences of the bombing were catastrophic: at the moment of the explosion, at 11.02 local time, 70 thousand residents of Nagasaki were killed, and the city was practically wiped off the face of the Earth.

In subsequent years, the list of disaster victims continued to grow with those who died from radiation sickness. This number increases every year, and the numbers are updated every year on August 9th. According to data announced in 2014, the number of victims of the Nagasaki bombing increased to 165,409 people.

Years later, an atomic bomb museum was opened in Nagasaki, as in Hiroshima. Last July, his collection was replenished with 26 new photographs, which were taken a year and four months after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japanese cities. The images themselves were recently discovered. In particular, they depict the so-called zero mark - the place of the direct explosion. atomic bomb in Nagasaki. Signatures on back side The photographs show that the pictures were taken in December 1946 by American scientists who were visiting the city at that time to study the consequences of a terrible atomic attack. “The photographs are of particular value, as they clearly demonstrate the full scale of the destruction, and, at the same time, make it clear what work was done to restore the city practically from scratch,” the Nagasaki administration believes.
One of the photos shows a strange arrow-shaped monument installed in the middle of the field, the inscription on which reads: “Zero mark of the atomic explosion.” Local experts are at a loss as to who installed the almost 5-meter monument and where it is now. It is noteworthy that it is located exactly in the place where the official monument to the victims of the atomic bombing of 1945 now stands.

Hiroshima Peace Museum © AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye

Blind spots of history

The atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has been the subject of careful study by many historians, but 70 years after the tragedy, many blank spots remain in this story. There are some testimonies of individuals who believe that they were born "in the shirt" because, according to them, a few weeks before the atomic bombing, information appeared about a possible deadly attack on these Japanese cities. Thus, one of these people claims that he studied at a school for children of high-ranking military personnel. According to him, several weeks before the strike, all personnel educational institution and his students were evacuated from Hiroshima, which saved their lives.
There are also completely conspiracy theories according to which, on the threshold of the end of World War II, Japanese scientists, with the help of colleagues from Germany, approached the creation of an atomic bomb. Weapons of terrible destructive power allegedly could appear in imperial army, whose command was going to fight to the end and constantly hurried the nuclear scientists. The media claim that records have recently been found containing calculations and descriptions of equipment for enriching uranium for subsequent use in creating a Japanese atomic bomb. The scientists received the order to complete the program on August 14, 1945, and apparently were ready to carry it out, but did not have time. The American atomic bombing of the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the entry of the Soviet Union into the war did not leave Japan any chance to continue hostilities.

No more war

Survivors of the bombings in Japan are referred to by the special word "hibakusha" ("person who suffered from the bombing").
In the first years after the tragedy, many hibakusha hid the fact that they survived the bombing and received a high dose of radiation because they were afraid of discrimination. Then they were not provided with financial assistance and were denied treatment. It took 12 years before the Japanese government passed a law making treatment for bomb victims free of charge.
Some of the hibakusha have dedicated their lives to educational work to ensure that the terrible tragedy does not happen again.
“About 30 years ago, I happened to see a friend of mine on TV, he was among the participants in the march to ban nuclear weapons. This prompted me to join this movement. Since then, remembering my experience, I explain that atomic weapons are "This is an inhumane weapon. It is completely indiscriminate, unlike conventional weapons. I have dedicated my life to explaining the need to ban atomic weapons to those who know nothing about atomic bombings, especially young people," wrote hibakusha Michimasa Hirata on one of the websites, dedicated to preserving the memory of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Many Hiroshima residents whose families were affected to varying degrees by the atomic bomb are trying to help others learn more about what happened on August 6, 1945 and to convey the message of the dangers of nuclear weapons and war. Near the Peace Park and the Atomic Dome memorial you can meet people who are ready to talk about the tragic events.
“August 6, 1945 is a special day for me, it’s my second birthday. When the atomic bomb was dropped on us, I was only 9 years old. I was in my house about two kilometers from the epicenter of the explosion in Hiroshima. A sudden brilliant flash hit over my head. She fundamentally changed Hiroshima... This scene, which then developed, defies description. This is a living hell on earth," Michimasa Hirata shares his memories.

Bombing of Hiroshima © EPA/A PEACE MEMORIAL MUSEUM

"The city was enveloped in huge fire whirlwinds"

“70 years ago, I was three years old. On August 6, my father was at work 1 km from the place where the atomic bomb was dropped,” said one of the hibakusha, Hiroshi Shimizu. “At the moment of the explosion, he was thrown back by a huge shock wave. He immediately felt that numerous shards of glass were pierced into his face, and his body began to bleed. The building where he was working instantly burst into flames. Everyone who could ran out to a nearby pond. My father spent about three hours there. At that time, the city was enveloped in huge fiery vortices.
He was only able to find us the next day. Two months later he died. By that time, his stomach had completely turned black. Within a radius of one kilometer from the explosion, the radiation level was 7 sieverts. This dose can destroy cells of internal organs.
At the time of the explosion, my mother and I were at home about 1.6 km from the epicenter. Since we were inside, we were able to avoid a lot of radiation. However, the house was destroyed by the shock wave. Mother managed to break through the roof and get out into the street with me. After that, we evacuated to the south, away from the epicenter. As a result, we managed to avoid the real hell that was going on there, because there was nothing left within a radius of 2 km.
For 10 years after the bombing, my mother and I suffered from various illnesses caused by the dose of radiation we received. We had stomach problems, nosebleeds all the time, and our general immune system was also very poor. All this passed when I was 12 years old, and after that I didn’t have any health problems for a long time. However, after 40 years, illnesses began to haunt me one after another, the functioning of my kidneys and heart sharply deteriorated, my spine began to hurt, signs of diabetes and problems with cataracts appeared.
Only later did it become clear that it was not just the dose of radiation that we received during the explosion. We continued to live and eat vegetables grown on contaminated soil, drink water from contaminated rivers and eat contaminated seafood."

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon (left) and hibakusha Sumiteru Taniguchi in front of photographs of people affected by the bombing. Top photo shows Taniguchi himself © EPA/KIMIMASA MAYAMA

"Kill me!"

A photograph of one of the most famous figures of the hibakusha movement, Sumiteru Taniguchi, taken in January 1946 by an American war photographer, spread throughout the world. The photo, dubbed "red back," shows severe burns on Taniguchi's back.
“In 1945, I was 16 years old,” he says. “On August 9, I was delivering mail on a bicycle and was about 1.8 km from the epicenter of the bombing. At the moment of the explosion, I saw a flash, and the blast wave threw me off my bicycle. The heat was burning everything is in its path. At first I had the impression that a bomb had exploded next to me. The ground under my feet was shaking, as if there had been a strong earthquake. After I came to my senses, I looked at my hands - I was literally hanging from them. skin. However, at that moment I didn’t even feel pain.”
“I don’t know how, but I managed to get to the ammunition factory, which was located in an underground tunnel. There I met a woman, and she helped me cut off pieces of skin on my hands and bandage them somehow. I remember how after that they immediately announced evacuation, but I could not go on my own. Other people helped me. They carried me to the top of the hill, where they laid me under a tree. After that, I fell asleep for a while. I woke up from machine-gun fire from American planes. From the fires it was as bright as day , so the pilots could easily monitor the movements of people. I lay under a tree for three days. During this time, everyone who was next to me died. I myself thought that I would die, I could not even call for help. But I was lucky - "On the third day, people came and rescued me. Blood was oozing from the burns on my back, and the pain was growing rapidly. In this condition, I was sent to the hospital," Taniguchi recalls.
Only in 1947 was the Japanese able to sit down, and in 1949 he was discharged from the hospital. He underwent 10 operations, and treatment continued until 1960.
“In the first years after the bombing, I couldn’t even move. The pain was unbearable. I often shouted: “Kill me!” The doctors did everything so that I could live. I remember how they repeated every day that I was alive. During the treatment, I learned for myself everything that radiation is capable of, all the terrible consequences of its impact,” Taniguchi said.

Children after the bombing of Nagasaki © AP Photo/United Nations, Yosuke Yamahata

"Then there was silence..."

“When the atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, I was six years old and living with my family in a traditional Japanese house,” recalls Yasuaki Yamashita. “Usually in the summer, when it was hot, I would run to the mountains with my friends to catch dragonflies and cicadas. But that day I was playing at home. Mom was cooking dinner next to me, as usual. Suddenly, at exactly 11.02, we were blinded by a light, as if 1000 lightning flashed simultaneously. Mom pushed me to the ground and covered me with herself. We heard a roar strong wind and the rustle of the fragments of the house flying towards us. Then there was silence..."
“Our house was 2.5 km from the epicenter. My sister, she was in the next room, was badly cut by flying glass shards. One of my friends went to play in the mountains that ill-fated day, and a heat wave from a bomb explosion hit him. "He suffered severe burns and died a few days later. My father was sent to help clear the rubble in the center of Nagasaki. At that time we did not yet know about the dangers of radiation, which caused his death," he writes.

During the final stages of World War II, on August 6 and 9, 1945, the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bombed with nuclear bombs dropped by the US military to hasten Japan's surrender. There's been a lot since then nuclear threats created by various countries of the world, but nevertheless, only these two cities remain the only victims of a nuclear attack. Here are a few interesting facts about Hiroshima and Nagasaki that you may have never heard of.

10 PHOTOS

1. Oleander is the official flower of the city of Hiroshima because it was the first plant to bloom after the nuclear attack.
2. Six ginkgo trees growing about 1.6 km from the bomb site in Nagasaki were severely damaged by the explosion. Surprisingly, they all survived, and soon new buds appeared from the burned trunks. Now the ginkgo tree is a symbol of hope in Japan.
3. B Japanese There is a word called hibakusha, which translates to “people exposed to explosion.” This is the name given to those who survived the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
4. Every year on August 6th, a remembrance ceremony is held at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, and at exactly 8:15 (the time of the explosion) a minute of silence occurs.
5. Hiroshima continues to advocate for the abolition of all nuclear weapons, and the city's mayor is the president of a movement for peace and the elimination of the nuclear arsenal by 2020.
6. It was not until 1958 that the population of Hiroshima reached 410,000 and finally exceeded the pre-war population. Today the city is home to 1.2 million people.
7. According to some estimates, about 10% of the victims of the bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki were Koreans. Most of them were forced laborers producing weapons and ammunition for the Japanese military. Today, both cities still have large Korean communities.
8. Among the children born to those who were in Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the time of the explosion, no mutations or serious health abnormalities were identified.
9. Despite this, survivors of the bombing and their children were subject to serious discrimination, mainly due to the prevailing ignorant public beliefs about the consequences of radiation sickness. Many of them found it difficult to find work or get married because most people believed that radiation sickness was contagious and inherited.
10. The famous Japanese monster Godzilla was originally invented as a metaphor for the explosions in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Nuclear weapons have been used for combat purposes only twice in the entire history of mankind. The atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 showed how dangerous it could be. It was the real experience of using nuclear weapons that was able to keep two powerful powers (the USA and the USSR) from starting a third world war.

Dropping the bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki

During World War II, millions of innocent people suffered. The leaders of world powers blindly put the lives of soldiers and civilians on the line, hoping to achieve superiority in the struggle for world domination. One of the worst disasters ever world history was the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as a result of which about 200 thousand people were killed, and the total number of people who died during and after the explosion (from radiation) reached 500 thousand.

There are still only speculations about what led the President of the United States of America to order the dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Did he realize, did he know, what destruction and consequences a nuclear bomb would leave after the explosion? Or was this action intended to demonstrate combat power in front of the USSR in order to completely kill any thoughts of attacks on the United States?

History has not preserved the motives that motivated the 33rd US President Harry Truman when he ordered a nuclear attack on Japan, but only one thing can be said with certainty: it was the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki that forced the Japanese emperor to sign surrender.

In order to try to understand the motives of the United States, one must carefully consider the situation that arose in the political arena in those years.

Emperor Hirohito of Japan

Japanese Emperor Hirohito had good leadership abilities. In order to expand his lands, in 1935 he decided to capture all of China, which at that time was a backward agrarian country. Following the example of Hitler (with whom Japan entered into a military alliance in 1941), Hirohito begins to conquer China using methods favored by the Nazis.

In order to clear China of its indigenous inhabitants, Japanese troops used chemical weapon which was banned. Inhumane experiments were carried out on the Chinese, with the goal of finding out the limits of the viability of the human body in various situations. In total, about 25 million Chinese died during Japanese expansion, most of whom were children and women.

It is possible that the nuclear bombing of Japanese cities might not have taken place if, after concluding a military pact with Hitler's Germany, the Emperor of Japan had not given the order to launch an attack on Pearl Harbor, thereby provoking the United States to enter World War II. After this event, the date of the nuclear attack begins to approach with inexorable speed.

When it became clear that Germany's defeat was inevitable, the question of Japan's surrender seemed to be a matter of time. However, the Japanese emperor, the embodiment of samurai arrogance and a true God for his subjects, ordered all the inhabitants of the country to fight until last straw blood. Everyone, without exception, had to resist the invader, from soldiers to women and children. Knowing the mentality of the Japanese, there was no doubt that the residents would carry out the will of their emperor.

In order to force Japan to capitulate, radical measures had to be taken. The atomic explosion, which occurred first in Hiroshima and then in Nagasaki, turned out to be precisely the impetus that convinced the emperor of the futility of resistance.

Why was a nuclear attack chosen?

Although the number of versions of why a nuclear attack was chosen to intimidate Japan is quite large, the following versions should be considered the main ones:

Most historians (especially American) insist that the damage caused by dropped bombs is several times less than what could have been caused by a bloody invasion of American troops. According to this version, Hiroshima and Nagasaki were not sacrificed in vain, since it saved the lives of the remaining millions of Japanese;
According to the second version, the purpose of the nuclear attack was to show the USSR how advanced US military weapons were in order to intimidate a possible enemy. In 1945, the President of the United States was informed that activity had been detected. Soviet troops near the border with Turkey (which was an ally of England). Perhaps this is why Truman decided to intimidate the Soviet leader;
The third version says that the nuclear attack on Japan was American revenge for Pearl Harbor.

At the Potsdam Conference, which took place from July 17 to August 2, the fate of Japan was decided. Three states - the USA, England and the USSR, led by their leaders, signed the declaration. It talked about the sphere of post-war influence, although the Second World War was not finished yet. One of the points of this declaration spoke of the immediate surrender of Japan.

This document was sent to the Japanese government, which rejected this proposal. Following the example of their emperor, members of the government decided to continue the war to the end. After this, the fate of Japan was decided. Since the US military command was looking for where to use the latest atomic weapons, the President approved the atomic bombing of Japanese cities.

The coalition against Nazi Germany was on the verge of breaking (due to the fact that there was one month left before victory), the allied countries were unable to come to an agreement. The different policies of the USSR and the USA ultimately led these states to the Cold War.

The fact that US President Harry Truman was informed about the start of nuclear bomb testing on the eve of the meeting in Potsdam played an important role in the decision of the head of state. Wanting to intimidate Stalin, Truman hinted to the Generalissimo that he had a new weapon ready, which could leave huge casualties after the explosion.

Stalin ignored this statement, although he soon called Kurchatov and ordered the completion of work on the development of Soviet nuclear weapons.

Having not received Stalin's answer, the American president decides to launch atomic bombing at his own peril and risk.

Why were Hiroshima and Nagasaki chosen for nuclear attack?

In the spring of 1945, the US military had to select suitable sites for full-scale nuclear bomb testing. Even then, it was possible to notice the prerequisites that the last test of an American nuclear bomb was planned to be carried out at a civilian facility. The list of requirements created by scientists for the latest nuclear bomb test looked like this:

The object had to be on a plain so that the blast wave would not be hampered by uneven terrain;
Urban development should be made of wood as much as possible so that the destruction from fire is maximum;
The property must have maximum building density;
The size of the object must exceed 3 kilometers in diameter;
The selected city must be located as far as possible from enemy military bases in order to exclude the intervention of enemy military forces;
For a strike to bring maximum benefit, it must be delivered to a large industrial center.

These requirements indicate that the nuclear strike was most likely something that had been planned for a long time, and Germany could well have been in Japan’s place.

The intended targets were 4 Japanese cities. These are Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Kyoto and Kokura. Of these, it was only necessary to select two real targets, since there were only two bombs. An American expert on Japan, Professor Reishower, begged to remove the city of Kyoto from the list, since it was of enormous historical value. It is unlikely that this request could have influenced the decision, but then the Minister of Defense, who was spending his honeymoon with his wife in Kyoto, intervened. They met the minister and Kyoto was saved from a nuclear strike.

Kyoto's place on the list was taken by the city of Kokura, which was chosen as a target along with Hiroshima (although later weather conditions made their own adjustments, and Nagasaki had to be bombed instead of Kokura). The cities had to be large and the destruction large-scale so that the Japanese people would be horrified and stop resisting. Of course, the main thing was to influence the position of the emperor.

Research by historians from around the world shows that the American side was not at all concerned about the moral side of the issue. Tens and hundreds of potential civilian casualties were of no concern to either the government or the military.

After looking through entire volumes of secret materials, historians came to the conclusion that Hiroshima and Nagasaki were doomed in advance. There were only two bombs, and these cities had a convenient geographical location. In addition, Hiroshima was a very densely built-up city, and an attack on it could unleash the full potential of a nuclear bomb. The city of Nagasaki was the largest industrial center working for the defense industry. It was produced there a large number of guns and military equipment.

Details of the bombing of Hiroshima

The military strike on the Japanese city of Hiroshima was planned in advance and carried out in accordance with a clear plan. Each point of this plan was clearly implemented, which indicates careful preparation of this operation.

On July 26, 1945, a nuclear bomb named "Baby" was delivered to the island of Tinian. By the end of the month, all preparations were completed and the bomb was ready for combat operation. After checking meteorological readings, the date of the bombing was set - August 6. On this day the weather was excellent and the bomber, with a nuclear bomb on board, took off into the air. Its name (Enola Gay) was remembered for a long time not only by the victims of the nuclear attack, but also by all of Japan.

The plane is in flight, deathly on board, they were accompanied by three planes, whose task was to determine the direction of the wind so that the atomic bomb would hit the target as accurately as possible. An airplane was flying behind the bomber, which was supposed to record all the data from the explosion using sensitive equipment. A bomber was flying at a safe distance with a photographer on board. Several aircraft flying towards the city did not cause any concern either to the Japanese air defense forces or to the civilian population.

Although Japanese radars detected the approaching enemy, they did not raise the alarm because of a small group of military aircraft. Residents were warned about a possible bombing, but they continued to work quietly. Since the nuclear strike was not like a conventional air raid, not a single Japanese fighter took off to intercept it. Even the artillery did not pay attention to the approaching planes.

At 8:15 a.m., the Enola Gay bomber dropped a nuclear bomb. This reset was carried out using a parachute to enable a group of attacking aircraft to move to a safe distance. Having dropped the bomb at an altitude of 9,000 meters, the battle group turned around and left.

Having flown about 8,500 meters, the bomb exploded at an altitude of 576 meters from the ground. A deafening explosion covered the city with an avalanche of fire, which destroyed everything in its path. Directly at the epicenter, people simply disappeared, leaving behind only the so-called “shadows of Hiroshima.” All that remained of the person was a dark silhouette imprinted on the floor or walls. At a distance from the epicenter, people were burning alive, turning into black firebrands. Those who were on the outskirts of the city were a little more fortunate; many of them survived, having received only terrible burns.

This day became a day of mourning not only in Japan, but throughout the world. About 100,000 people died that day, and the following years claimed the lives of several hundred thousand more. All of them died from radiation burns and radiation sickness. By official statistics Japanese authorities as of January 2017, the number of deaths and injuries from the American uranium bomb is 308,724 people.

Hiroshima today is largest city Chugoku region. The city has a memorial dedicated to the victims of the American atomic bombing.

What happened in Hiroshima on the day of the tragedy

The first Japanese official sources said that the city of Hiroshima was attacked by new bombs that were dropped from several American aircraft. People did not yet know that the new bombs destroyed tens of thousands of lives in an instant, and the consequences nuclear explosion will last for decades.

It is possible that even the American scientists who created atomic weapons did not imagine what consequences radiation would have for people. For 16 hours after the explosion, not a single signal was received from Hiroshima. Noticing this, the Broadcast Station operator began making attempts to contact the city, but the city remained silent.

After a short period of time, incomprehensible and confusing information came from the railway station, which was located not far from the city, from which the Japanese authorities understood only one thing: an enemy raid had been carried out on the city. It was decided to send the plane for reconnaissance, since the authorities knew for sure that no serious enemy combat air groups had broken through the front line.

Approaching the city at a distance of about 160 kilometers, the pilot and the officer accompanying him saw a huge dust cloud. As they flew closer, they saw a terrible picture of destruction: the entire city was ablaze with fires, and smoke and dust made it difficult to discern the details of the tragedy.

Landing in safe place, a Japanese officer reported to the command that the city of Hiroshima was destroyed by US aircraft. After this, the military began to selflessly provide assistance to their wounded and shell-shocked compatriots from the bomb explosion.

This disaster united all the surviving people into one big family. Wounded people, barely able to stand, cleared the rubble and put out fires, trying to save as many compatriots as possible.

Washington made an official statement about the successful operation only 16 hours after the bombing.

Atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki

The city of Nagasaki, which was an industrial center, was never subjected to massive air strikes. They tried to preserve it to demonstrate the enormous power of the atomic bomb. Only a few high-explosive bombs damaged weapons factories, shipyards and medical hospitals a week before the terrible tragedy.

Now it seems incredible, but Nagasaki became the second Japanese city to be subjected to nuclear bombing, only by chance. The initial target was the city of Kokura.

The second bomb was delivered and loaded onto the plane, following the same plan as in the case of Hiroshima. The plane with the nuclear bomb took off and flew towards the city of Kokura. On approach to the island, three American planes had to meet to record the explosion of an atomic bomb.

Two planes met, but they did not wait for the third. Contrary to the forecast of meteorologists, the sky over Kokura became clouded, and visual dropping of the bomb became impossible. Having circled over the island for 45 minutes and not waiting for the third plane, the commander of the plane that was carrying nuclear bomb on board, noticed problems with the fuel supply system. Since the weather had completely deteriorated, it was decided to fly to the reserve target area - the city of Nagasaki. The group, consisting of two aircraft, flew to an alternate target.

On August 9, 1945, at 7:50 a.m., the residents of Nagasaki woke up to an air raid signal and went down to shelters and bomb shelters. After 40 minutes, considering the alarm not worthy of attention, and classifying the two aircraft as reconnaissance aircraft, the military canceled it. People went about their normal business, not suspecting that an atomic explosion was about to occur.

The Nagasaki attack went exactly the same way as the Hiroshima attack, only high clouds almost ruined the Americans' bomb release. Literally in last minutes, when the fuel supply was at its limit, the pilot noticed a “window” in the clouds and dropped a nuclear bomb at an altitude of 8,800 meters.

The carelessness of the Japanese air defense forces is striking, which, despite news of a similar attack on Hiroshima, did not take any measures to neutralize American military aircraft.

The atomic bomb, called “Fat Man,” exploded at 11:20 a.m. and within a few seconds turned a beautiful city into a kind of hell on earth. 40,000 people died in an instant, and another 70,000 suffered terrible burns and injuries.

Consequences of nuclear bombings of Japanese cities

The consequences of a nuclear attack on Japanese cities were unpredictable. In addition to those killed at the time of the explosion and during the first year after it, radiation continued to kill people for many years. As a result, the number of victims doubled.

Thus, the nuclear attack brought the United States a long-awaited victory, and Japan had to make concessions. The consequences of the nuclear bombing struck Emperor Hirohito so much that he unconditionally accepted the terms of the Potsdam Conference. Based on the official version, the nuclear attack carried out by the US military brought exactly what the American government wanted.

In addition, the USSR troops, which accumulated on the border with Turkey, were urgently transferred to Japan, to which the USSR declared war. According to members of the Soviet Politburo, upon learning of the consequences caused by nuclear explosions, Stalin said that the Turks were lucky because the Japanese had sacrificed themselves for them.

Only two weeks passed after the entry of Soviet troops into Japanese territory, and Emperor Hirohito had already signed an act of unconditional surrender. This day (September 2, 1945) went down in history as the day the Second World War ended.

Was there an urgent need to bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

Even in modern Japan, debate continues over whether the nuclear bombing was necessary or not. Scientists from all over the world are painstakingly studying secret documents and archives from the Second World War. Most researchers agree that Hiroshima and Nagasaki were sacrificed to end the world war.

The famous Japanese historian Tsuyoshi Hasegawa believes that the atomic bombing was launched to prevent the expansion of the Soviet Union into Asian countries. This also allowed the United States to assert itself as a leader in military terms, which they succeeded brilliantly. After the nuclear explosion, arguing with the United States was very dangerous.

If you adhere to this theory, then Hiroshima and Nagasaki were simply sacrificed to the political ambitions of superpowers. Tens of thousands of victims were completely ignored.

One can guess what could have happened if the USSR had managed to complete the development of its nuclear bomb before the United States. It is possible that the atomic bombing would not have happened then.

Modern nuclear weapon exceeds the power of the bombs dropped on Japanese cities by thousands of times. It is difficult to even imagine what could happen if the world's two largest powers started a nuclear war.

The most little-known facts regarding the tragedy in Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Although the tragedy in Hiroshima and Nagasaki is known throughout the world, there are facts that only a few know:

A man who managed to survive in hell. Although everyone near the epicenter of the explosion died during the explosion of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima, one person, who was in a basement 200 meters from the epicenter, managed to survive;
War is war, but the tournament must continue. At a distance of less than 5 kilometers from the epicenter of the explosion in Hiroshima, a tournament in the ancient Chinese game “Go” was taking place. Although the explosion destroyed the building and many participants were injured, the tournament continued that day;
Capable of withstanding even a nuclear explosion. Although the explosion in Hiroshima destroyed most of the buildings, a safe in one bank was not damaged. After the end of the war, the American company that produced these safes received a letter of gratitude from the manager of a bank in Hiroshima;
Extraordinary luck. Tsutomu Yamaguchi was the only person on earth who officially survived two atomic explosions. After the explosion in Hiroshima, he went to work in Nagasaki, where he again managed to survive;
Pumpkin bombs. Before the atomic bombing began, the United States dropped 50 “Pumpkin” bombs on Japan, so named for their resemblance to a pumpkin;
An attempt to overthrow the emperor. The Emperor of Japan mobilized all the country's citizens for "total war." This meant that every Japanese, including women and children, had to defend their country to the last drop of blood. After the emperor, frightened by atomic explosions, accepted all the terms of the Potsdam Conference and later capitulated, Japanese generals tried to carry out a coup d'etat, which failed;
Those who encountered a nuclear explosion and survived. Japanese Gingko biloba trees are amazingly resilient. After the nuclear attack on Hiroshima, 6 of these trees survived and continue to grow to this day;
People who dreamed of salvation. After the explosion in Hiroshima, hundreds of survivors fled to Nagasaki. Of these, 164 people managed to survive, although only Tsutomu Yamaguchi is considered an official survivor;
Not a single police officer was killed in the atomic explosion in Nagasaki. The surviving law enforcement officers from Hiroshima were sent to Nagasaki in order to train their colleagues in the basics of behavior after a nuclear explosion. As a result of these actions, not a single police officer was killed in the Nagasaki explosion;
25 percent of Japan's dead were Koreans. Although it is believed that all those killed in the atomic explosions were Japanese, a quarter of them were actually Koreans who were conscripted by the Japanese government to fight in the war;
Radiation is like fairy tales for children. After the atomic explosion American government for a long time hid the fact of the presence of radioactive contamination;
Meetinghouse. Few people know that the US authorities did not limit themselves to nuclear bombing of two Japanese cities. Before this, using carpet bombing tactics, they destroyed several Japanese cities. During Operation Meetinghouse, the city of Tokyo was virtually destroyed and 300,000 of its inhabitants died;
They didn't know what they were doing. The crew of the plane that dropped the nuclear bomb on Hiroshima was 12 people. Of these, only three knew what a nuclear bomb was;
On one of the anniversaries of the tragedy (in 1964), an eternal flame was lit in Hiroshima, which should burn as long as there is at least one nuclear warhead left in the world;
Lost connection. After the destruction of Hiroshima, communication with the city was completely lost. Only three hours later the capital learned that Hiroshima had been destroyed;
Deadly poison. The crew of the Enola Gay were given ampoules of potassium cyanide, which they were to take if the task was not completed;
Radioactive mutants. The famous Japanese monster “Godzilla” was invented as a mutation due to radioactive contamination after a nuclear bomb;
Shadows of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The explosions of nuclear bombs were so powerful that people literally evaporated, leaving only dark imprints on the walls and floor as a reminder of themselves;
Symbol of Hiroshima. The first plant to bloom after the nuclear attack in Hiroshima was the oleander. It is he who is now the official symbol of the city of Hiroshima;
Warning before a nuclear attack. Before the nuclear attack began, US aircraft dropped millions of leaflets warning of impending bombing on 33 Japanese cities;
Radio signals. Until recently, an American radio station in Saipan broadcast warnings of a nuclear attack throughout Japan. The signals were repeated every 15 minutes.

The tragedy in Hiroshima and Nagasaki happened 72 years ago, but it still serves as a reminder that humanity should not mindlessly destroy its own kind.

... We have done the devil's work for him.

One of the creators of the American atomic bomb, Robert Oppenheimer

On August 9, 1945, human history began new era. It was on this day that the Little Boy nuclear bomb with a yield of 13 to 20 kilotons was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Three days later, American aircraft launched a second atomic strike on Japanese territory - the Fat Man bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.

As a result of two nuclear bombings, from 150 to 220 thousand people were killed (and these are only those who died immediately after the explosion), Hiroshima and Nagasaki were completely destroyed. The shock from the use of the new weapon was so strong that on August 15, the Japanese government announced its unconditional surrender, which was signed on August 2, 1945. This day is considered the official date of the end of World War II.

After this, a new era began, a period of confrontation between two superpowers - the USA and the USSR, which historians called the Cold War. For more than fifty years, the world has been teetering on the brink of a large-scale thermonuclear conflict, which would very likely put an end to our civilization. The atomic explosion in Hiroshima confronted humanity with new threats that have not lost their severity today.

Was the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki necessary, was there a military necessity for this? Historians and politicians argue about this to this day.

Of course, a strike on peaceful cities and a huge number of victims among their residents looks like a crime. However, we should not forget that at that time the bloodiest war in human history was going on, one of the initiators of which was Japan.

The scale of the tragedy that occurred in Japanese cities clearly showed the whole world the danger of new weapons. However, this did not prevent its further spread: the club nuclear states is constantly replenished with new members, which increases the likelihood of a repeat of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

"The Manhattan Project": the history of the creation of the atomic bomb

The beginning of the twentieth century was a time of rapid development of nuclear physics. Every year, significant discoveries were made in this field of knowledge, people learned more and more about how matter works. The work of such brilliant scientists as Curie, Rutherford and Fermi made it possible to discover the possibility of a nuclear chain reaction under the influence of a neutron beam.

In 1934, American physicist Leo Szilard received a patent for the creation of an atomic bomb. It should be understood that all these studies took place in the context of the approaching world war and against the backdrop of the Nazis coming to power in Germany.

In August 1939, a letter signed by a group of famous physicists was delivered to US President Franklin Roosevelt. Among the signatories was Albert Einstein. The letter warned the US leadership about the possibility of creating in Germany a fundamentally new weapon of destructive power - a nuclear bomb.

After this, the Bureau was created scientific research and developments, which dealt with issues of atomic weapons, additional funds were allocated for research in the field of uranium fission.

It should be admitted that American scientists had every reason to be apprehensive: in Germany they were indeed actively engaged in research in the field of atomic physics and had some success. In 1938, German scientists Strassmann and Hahn split a uranium nucleus for the first time. And the following year, German scientists turned to the country's leadership, pointing out the possibility of creating a fundamentally new weapon. In 1939, the first reactor plant was launched in Germany, and the export of uranium outside the country was prohibited. After the outbreak of World War II, all German research related to the “uranium” topic was strictly classified.

In Germany, more than twenty institutes and other scientific centers were involved in the project to create nuclear weapons. Giants of German industry were involved in the work, and they were personally supervised by German Arms Minister Speer. To obtain a sufficient amount of uranium-235, a reactor was needed, the reaction moderator in which could be either heavy water or graphite. The Germans chose the water they created for themselves serious problem and practically deprived themselves of the prospects of creating nuclear weapons.

In addition, when it became clear that German nuclear weapons were unlikely to appear before the end of the war, Hitler significantly cut funding for the project. True, the Allies had a very vague idea about all this and were quite seriously afraid of Hitler’s atomic bomb.

American work in the field of creating atomic weapons has become much more effective. In 1943, the secret program “Manhattan Project” was launched in the United States, led by physicist Robert Oppenheimer and General Groves. Huge resources were allocated to create new weapons; dozens of world-famous physicists participated in the project. American scientists were helped by their colleagues from Great Britain, Canada and Europe, which ultimately made it possible to solve the problem in a relatively short time.

By mid-1945, the United States already had three nuclear bombs, with uranium (“Baby”) and plutonium (“Fat Man”) filling.

On July 16, the world's first nuclear weapons test took place: the Trinity plutonium bomb was detonated at the Alamogordo test site (New Mexico). The tests were considered successful.

Political background of the bombings

May 8, 1945 Hitler's Germany capitulated unconditionally. In the Potsdam Declaration, the United States, China and Great Britain invited Japan to do the same. But the descendants of the samurai refused to capitulate, so the war ended Pacific Ocean continued. Earlier, in 1944, there was a meeting between the US President and the British Prime Minister, at which, among other things, they discussed the possibility of using nuclear weapons against the Japanese.

In mid-1945, it was clear to everyone (including the Japanese leadership) that the United States and its allies were winning the war. However, the Japanese were not broken morally, as demonstrated by the Battle of Okinawa, which cost the Allies enormous (from their point of view) casualties.

The Americans mercilessly bombed Japanese cities, but this did not reduce the fury of resistance to the Japanese army. The United States began to think about what losses a massive landing on the Japanese islands would cost them. The use of new weapons of destructive force was supposed to undermine the morale of the Japanese and break their will to resist.

After the question of the use of nuclear weapons against Japan was decided positively, the special committee began to select targets for future bombing. The list consisted of several cities, and in addition to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, it also included Kyoto, Yokohama, Kokura and Niigata. The Americans did not want to use a nuclear bomb against exclusively military targets; its use was supposed to have a strong psychological effect on the Japanese and show the whole world a new instrument of US power. Therefore, a number of requirements were put forward for the purpose of the bombing:

Cities chosen as targets for atomic bombing must be major economic centers, significant for the war industry, and also be psychologically important to the Japanese population
The bombing should cause a significant resonance in the world
The military was not happy with the cities that had already suffered from air raids. They wanted to evaluate more clearly destructive force new weapons.

The cities of Hiroshima and Kokura were initially chosen. Kyoto was removed from the list by US Secretary of War Henry Stimson because he honeymooned there as a young man and was in awe of the city's history.

An additional target was selected for each city, and they planned to strike it if the main objective will not be available for any reason. Nagasaki was chosen as insurance for the city of Kokura.

Bombing of Hiroshima

On July 25, US President Truman gave the order to begin bombing on August 3 and hit one of the selected targets at the first opportunity, and the second as soon as the next bomb was assembled and delivered.

At the beginning of the summer, the 509th Combined Group of the US Air Force arrived on Tinian Island, the location of which was separate from other units and carefully guarded.

On July 26, the cruiser Indianapolis delivered the first nuclear bomb, “Baby,” to the island, and by August 2, components of the second nuclear charge, “Fat Man,” were transported to Tinian by air.

Before the war, Hiroshima had a population of 340 thousand people and was the seventh largest Japanese city. According to other information, before the nuclear bombing, 245 thousand people lived in the city. Hiroshima was located on a plain, just above sea level, on six islands connected by numerous bridges.

The city was an important industrial center and supply base for the Japanese military. Plants and factories were located on its outskirts, the residential sector mainly consisted of low-rise wooden buildings. The headquarters of the Fifth Division and the Second Army were located in Hiroshima, which essentially provided protection for the entire southern part of the Japanese islands.

The pilots were able to begin the mission only on August 6, before which they were hampered by heavy clouds. At 1:45 on August 6, an American B-29 bomber from the 509th Aviation Regiment, as part of a group of escort aircraft, took off from the Tinian Island airfield. The bomber was named Enola Gay in honor of the mother of the aircraft's commander, Colonel Paul Tibbetts.

The pilots were confident that dropping an atomic bomb on Hiroshima was a good mission; they wanted a speedy end to the war and victory over the enemy. Before departure, they visited a church, and the pilots were given ampoules of potassium cyanide in case of danger of being captured.

Reconnaissance planes sent in advance to Kokura and Nagasaki reported that cloud cover over these cities would prevent the bombing. The pilot of the third reconnaissance aircraft reported that the sky over Hiroshima was clear and transmitted the prearranged signal.

Japanese radars detected a group of aircraft, but since their number was small, the air raid alert was canceled. The Japanese decided that they were dealing with reconnaissance aircraft.

At approximately eight o'clock in the morning, a B-29 bomber, rising to a height of nine kilometers, dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima. The explosion occurred at an altitude of 400-600 meters, a large number of clocks in the city that stopped at the moment of the explosion clearly recorded its exact time - 8 hours 15 minutes.

results

The consequences of an atomic explosion over a densely populated city were truly terrifying. Exact amount The victims of the bombing on Hiroshima could not be established; it ranges from 140 to 200 thousand. Of these, 70-80 thousand people who were near the epicenter died immediately after the explosion, the rest were much less fortunate. The enormous temperature of the explosion (up to 4 thousand degrees) literally evaporated people’s bodies or turned them into coal. The light radiation left imprinted silhouettes of passers-by on the ground and buildings (“shadows of Hiroshima”) and set fire to all flammable materials at a distance of several kilometers.

Following the flash of unbearably bright light, a suffocating blast wave struck, sweeping away everything in its path. The fires in the city merged into one huge fire tornado, which was driven by a strong wind towards the epicenter of the explosion. Those who did not manage to get out from under the rubble burned in this hellish flame.

After some time, the survivors of the explosion began to suffer from an unknown illness, which was accompanied by vomiting and diarrhea. These were symptoms of radiation sickness, which was unknown to medicine at that time. However, there were other delayed consequences of the bombing in the form of cancer and severe psychological shock, which haunted the survivors decades after the explosion.

It should be understood that in the middle of the last century, people did not sufficiently understand the consequences of the use of atomic weapons. Nuclear medicine was in its infancy; the concept of “radioactive contamination” as such did not exist. Therefore, after the war, the residents of Hiroshima began to rebuild their city and continued to live in their original places. High mortality from cancer and various genetic abnormalities The children of Hiroshima were not immediately associated with the nuclear bombing.

For a long time the Japanese could not understand what happened to one of their cities. Hiroshima stopped communicating and transmitting signals on the air. A plane sent to the city found it completely destroyed. Only after the official announcement from the United States did the Japanese realize what exactly had happened in Hiroshima.

Bombing of Nagasaki

The city of Nagasaki is located in two valleys separated by a mountain range. During the Second World War it was of great military importance as a major port and industrial center where warships, guns, torpedoes, Combat vehicles. The city was never subjected to large-scale aerial bombardment. At the time of the nuclear strike, about 200 thousand people lived in Nagasaki.

On August 9 at 2:47 a.m., an American B-29 bomber under the command of pilot Charles Sweeney with the Fat Man atomic bomb on board took off from the airfield on the island of Tinian. The primary target of the strike was the Japanese city of Kokura, but heavy clouds prevented the bomb from being dropped on it. The crew's additional target was the city of Nagasaki.

The bomb was dropped at 11.02 and detonated at an altitude of 500 meters. Unlike the "Little Boy" dropped on Hiroshima, the "Fat Man" was a plutonium bomb with a yield of 21 kT. The epicenter of the explosion was located over the industrial zone of the city.

Despite the greater power of the ammunition, damage and losses in Nagasaki were less than in Hiroshima. Several factors contributed to this. Firstly, the city was located on the hills, which absorbed part of the force of the nuclear explosion, and secondly, the bomb went off over the industrial zone of Nagasaki. If the explosion had occurred over residential areas, there would have been many more casualties. Part of the area affected by the explosion was generally on the water surface.

The victims of the Nagasaki bomb were from 60 to 80 thousand people (who died immediately or before the end of 1945); the number of people who died later from diseases caused by radiation is unknown. Various figures are cited, the maximum of which is 140 thousand people.

In the city, 14 thousand buildings (out of 54 thousand) were destroyed, more than 5 thousand buildings were significantly damaged. The firestorm that was observed in Hiroshima did not occur in Nagasaki.

Initially, the Americans did not plan to stop at two nuclear strikes. The third bomb was being prepared for mid-August, and three more were planned to be dropped in September. The US government planned to continue atomic bombing until the start of ground operations. However, on August 10, the Japanese government conveyed surrender proposals to the Allies. A day earlier, the Soviet Union entered the war against Japan, and the country's situation became absolutely hopeless.

Was the bombing necessary?

The debate about whether it was necessary to drop atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki has not subsided for many decades. Naturally, today this action looks like a monstrous and inhumane crime of the United States. Domestic patriots and fighters against American imperialism like to raise this topic. Meanwhile, the question is not clear-cut.

It should be understood that at that time there was a world war going on, characterized by an unprecedented level of cruelty and inhumanity. Japan was one of the initiators of this massacre and waged a brutal war of conquest since 1937. In Russia there is often an opinion that nothing serious happened in the Pacific Ocean - but this is an erroneous point of view. Fighting in this region led to the death of 31 million people, most of them civilians. The cruelty with which the Japanese pursued their policy in China surpasses even the atrocities of the Nazis.

The Americans sincerely hated Japan, with whom they had been fighting since 1941, and really wanted to end the war with the least losses. The atomic bomb was simply a new type of weapon; they had only a theoretical understanding of its power, and they knew even less about the consequences in the form of radiation sickness. I don’t think that if the USSR had an atomic bomb, anyone from the Soviet leadership would have doubted whether it was necessary to drop it on Germany. Until the end of his life, US President Truman believed that he had done the right thing by ordering the bombing.

August 2018 marked 73 years since the nuclear bombing of Japanese cities. Nagasaki and Hiroshima today are prosperous metropolises with few reminders of the 1945 tragedy. However, if humanity forgets this terrible lesson, it will most likely happen again. The horrors of Hiroshima showed people what kind of Pandora's box they had opened by creating nuclear weapons. It was the ashes of Hiroshima that during the decades of the Cold War sobered up too hot heads, preventing them from unleashing a new world massacre.

Thanks to the support of the United States and the abandonment of previous militaristic policies, Japan has become what it is today - a country with one of the strongest economies in the world, a recognized leader in the automotive industry and in the field of high technology. After the end of the war, the Japanese chose new way development, which turned out to be much more successful than the previous one.

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