THE ATOMIC BOMBING OF HIROSHIMA AND NAGASAKI (AUGUST 6 & 9, 1945)

             70 years ago on this date, August 6, 1945, Hiroshima, Japan is devastated when the atomic bomb "Little Boy" is dropped by the United States B-29 Enola Gay. Around 70,000 people are killed instantly, and some tens of thousands die in subsequent years from burns and radiation poisoning.

            I will post information about the Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki from Wikipedia and other links.

Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Part of the Pacific War, World War II
Left picture : At the time this photo was made, smoke billowed 20,000 feet above Hiroshima while smoke from the burst of the first atomic bomb had spread over 10,000 feet on the target at the base of the rising column. Six planes of the 509th Composite Group, participated in this mission; one to carry the bomb Enola Gay, one to take scientific measurements of the blast The Great Artiste, the third to take photographs Necessary Evil the others flew approximately an hour ahead to act as weather scouts, 08/06/1945. Bad weather would disqualify a target as the scientists insisted on a visual delivery, the primary target was Hiroshima, secondary was Kokura, and tertiary was Nagasaki. Right picture : Atomic bombing of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, taken by Charles Levy.
Date August 6 and August 9, 1945 Location Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan Result Allied victory
Belligerents
United States United Kingdom	Japan
Commanders and leaders
William S. Parsons Paul W. Tibbets, Jr.	Shunroku Hata
Units involved
Manhattan District: 50 U.S., 2 British 509th Composite Group: 1,770 U.S.	Second General Army: Hiroshima: 40,000 Nagasaki: 9,000
Casualties and losses
20 U.S., Dutch, British prisoners of war killed	Hiroshima: 20,000+ soldiers killed 70,000–146,000 civilians killed Nagasaki: 39,000–80,000 killed Total: 129,000–246,000+ killed

In August 1945, during the final stage of the Second World War, the United States dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The two bombings, which killed at least 129,000 people, remain the only use of nuclear weapons for warfare in history.

As the war entered its sixth and final year, the Allies had begun to prepare for what was anticipated to be a very costly invasion of the Japanese mainland. This was preceded by an immensely destructive firebombing campaign that obliterated many Japanese cities. The war in Europe had concluded when Nazi Germany signed its instrument of surrender on May 8, 1945, but with the Japanese refusal to accept the Allies' demands for unconditional surrender, the Pacific War dragged on. Together with the United Kingdom and China, the United States called for the unconditional surrender of the Japanese armed forces in the Potsdam Declaration on July 26, 1945; this was buttressed with the threat of "prompt and utter destruction".

By August 1945, the Allied Manhattan Project had successfully detonated an atomic device in the New Mexico desert and subsequently produced atomic weapons based on two alternate designs. The 509th Composite Group of the U.S. Army Air Forces was equipped with the specialized Silverplate version of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, that could deliver them from Tinian in the Mariana Islands.

A uranium gun-type atomic bomb (Little Boy) was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, followed by a plutonium implosion-type bomb (Fat Man) on the city of Nagasaki on August 9. Little Boy exploded 2,000 feet above Hiroshima in a blast equal to 12-15,000 tons of TNT, destroying five square miles of the city. Within the first two to four months of the bombings, the acute effects of the atomic bombings killed 90,000–166,000 people in Hiroshima and 39,000–80,000 in Nagasaki; roughly half of the deaths in each city occurred on the first day. During the following months, large numbers died from the effect of burns, radiation sickness, and other injuries, compounded by illness and malnutrition. In both cities, most of the dead were civilians, although Hiroshima had a sizable military garrison.

On August 15, just days after the bombing of Nagasaki and the Soviet Union's declaration of war, Japan announced its surrender to the Allies. On September 2, it signed the instrument of surrender, effectively ending World War II. The bombings' role in Japan's surrender and their ethical justification are still debated.

OTHER LINKS:

http://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/bombing-of-hiroshima-and-nagasaki

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/mp07.asp

http://history1900s.about.com/od/worldwarii/a/hiroshima.htm

http://www.atomcentral.com/hiroshima-nagasaki.aspx

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-05/hiroshima-bombing-did-not-lead-japanese-surrender-anniversary/6672616