Atomic Bomb Justified Essay

On the 7th of December 1941, the Japanese military launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor killing 2,403 people. One primary reason for this attack was America's withdrawal of oil supply to Japan. Following the attack, the US responded with an aggressive plan to build atomic bombs. Battles between the US and Japanese troops occurred throughout the Pacific. At the same time, the US began development of an atomic bomb as part of the Manhattan Project. The use of these devastating weapons would change warfare forever. President Truman had to make a choice; use atomic weapons that could end the war quickly, possibly save American lives, but at the same time, destroy cities and thousands of lives. The decision to use atomic weapons was justified

The bomb weighed over 9000 pounds and was nicknamed “Little Boy.” It was dropped by a B-29 called med Enola Gay after departing from Tinian Island, just north of Guam. Little Boy was made of uranium and had an explosive force of over 20,000 tons of TNT. It is estimated that over 120,000 people were killed by this bomb. In addition to the extreme death toll, the survivors experienced an increased risk of leukemia, thyroid, and other types of cancer. America had warned Japan that if they did not surrender, in 3 days they would send another bomb. Japan did not heed America's warning and the US responded with another bomb. The US carried through with its threat by dropping a second atomic bomb, nicknamed Fat Man, on 9 August 1945. The bomb weighed over 10,000 pounds and was drooped by a B-29 named Bockscar. This bomb was made of plutonium instead of uranium and the explosion killed between 60,000-80,000 people. This bomb had the explosive power of 1,200,000 tons of TNT. Shortly after this attack, Japan surrendered to America. Unknown to Japan, if the Japanese didn’t surrender, the US would not have been able to send a 3rd atomic bomb as didn’t have one. Japan officially surrendered on September 2nd,