Three days after the "Little Boy" bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima, the US Government dropped another atomic bomb on Nagasaki, known as "Fat Man.” It was a 21-kiloton plutonium device and the second nuclear weapon used in WW2. The decision to drop the bomb was made on August 7th, 1945. The bomb was released at an altitude of around 1,800 feet and had an explosive force of approximately 20,000 tons of TNT. The radiation and its effects are still present today. Prior to August 9th, Nagasaki had been the target of small scale bombing by the United States. Though the damage from these bombings was relatively small, it created concern in Nagasaki and many people were evacuated to rural areas for safety.
The dropping of Fat Man was to indicate that the United States had an endless amount of bombs for use against Japan and would continue to drop other atomic bombs on Japan until the country surrendered. An estimated 263,000 people were in Nagasaki on the day of the bombing, including 240,000 Japanese residents, 9,000 Japanese soldiers, and 400 prisoners of war. It is estimated that immediately after the bomb was dropped between 40,000 and 75,000 people died. A further 60,000 people suffered from severe injuries. By the end of 1945 the total amount of deaths caused by the Fat Man bomb reached 80,000.
In the days after the bombing, the survivors were advised to leave the cities, but many had nowhere to go. They did their best to find surviving shelters such as huts found on the edge of the cities or burned out trains in the stations. However, as soon as the bomb detonated, many were too late to escape the radiation poisoning. It only took a few days before people began to experience hair loss, bleeding gums, loss of energy, purple spots, aching pain and high fevers. At first, it was thought this illness was contagious and no one was aware that it was a result of radiation. The Japanese Government described radiation poisoning as an “evil spirit”. Those who survived the initial blast but were heavily exposed to radiation suffered greatly before passing away days later. The radiation poisoning also had intergenerational health effects. Women who were pregnant at the time gave birth to children who were largely at risk of premature death from cancer. Children, who were only a few years old at the time, had to live with severe medical issues as a memory of the dreadful day.
“‘Fat Man’ was an implosion-type weapon using plutonium. A sub critical sphere of plutonium was placed in the centre of a hollow sphere of high explosive (HE). Numerous detonators located on the surface of the HE were fired simultaneously to produce a powerful inward pressure on the capsule, squeezing it and increasing its density. This resulted in a super-critical condition and a nuclear explosion.”
- National Museum of the US Air force.
The dropping of Fat Man was to indicate that the United States had an endless amount of bombs for use against Japan and would continue to drop other atomic bombs on Japan until the country surrendered. An estimated 263,000 people were in Nagasaki on the day of the bombing, including 240,000 Japanese residents, 9,000 Japanese soldiers, and 400 prisoners of war. It is estimated that immediately after the bomb was dropped between 40,000 and 75,000 people died. A further 60,000 people suffered from severe injuries. By the end of 1945 the total amount of deaths caused by the Fat Man bomb reached 80,000.
In the days after the bombing, the survivors were advised to leave the cities, but many had nowhere to go. They did their best to find surviving shelters such as huts found on the edge of the cities or burned out trains in the stations. However, as soon as the bomb detonated, many were too late to escape the radiation poisoning. It only took a few days before people began to experience hair loss, bleeding gums, loss of energy, purple spots, aching pain and high fevers. At first, it was thought this illness was contagious and no one was aware that it was a result of radiation. The Japanese Government described radiation poisoning as an “evil spirit”. Those who survived the initial blast but were heavily exposed to radiation suffered greatly before passing away days later. The radiation poisoning also had intergenerational health effects. Women who were pregnant at the time gave birth to children who were largely at risk of premature death from cancer. Children, who were only a few years old at the time, had to live with severe medical issues as a memory of the dreadful day.
“‘Fat Man’ was an implosion-type weapon using plutonium. A sub critical sphere of plutonium was placed in the centre of a hollow sphere of high explosive (HE). Numerous detonators located on the surface of the HE were fired simultaneously to produce a powerful inward pressure on the capsule, squeezing it and increasing its density. This resulted in a super-critical condition and a nuclear explosion.”
- National Museum of the US Air force.
Fat Man Measurements
> Weight: 4,535 kg
> Length: 10 ft 8 in.; Diameter: 60 in.
> Fuel: Highly enriched plutonium 239
> Bomb Initiator: Beryllium - Polonium
> Efficiency of weapon: 10 times that of Little Boy
> Approximately 1 kilogram of plutonium used
> Use: Dropped on Japanese city of Nagasaki; August 9, 1945
> Nuclear Weaponeer: Cdr. Frederick Ashworth
> Delivery: B-29 Bockscar piloted by Maj. Charles
> Length: 10 ft 8 in.; Diameter: 60 in.
> Fuel: Highly enriched plutonium 239
> Bomb Initiator: Beryllium - Polonium
> Efficiency of weapon: 10 times that of Little Boy
> Approximately 1 kilogram of plutonium used
> Use: Dropped on Japanese city of Nagasaki; August 9, 1945
> Nuclear Weaponeer: Cdr. Frederick Ashworth
> Delivery: B-29 Bockscar piloted by Maj. Charles