Manhattan project

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Manhar Bhojwani 4.3

The Manhattan Project

        The Manhattan project took place during the Second World War. The project employed American and British scientists, who worked in Arizona and tried to build the first atomic bomb. They were in direct completion with the Nazis scientists, and knew that if they didn’t build the bomb first, the war would be lost. They eventually developed the bomb in 1945, but Nazis Germany had already surrendered. However the allies were still fighting in the Far East against Japan. The U.S government decided to drop two bombs in Japan, ending the war. They did this to stop more American lives being lost by the assault on Japan, however Historians also believe they dropped the bomb to show off to the U.S.S.R. The bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, killing 140,000 people.

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The Hiroshima bomb or little boy’ used Uranium- 235 as the fuel for the explosion. The Nagasaki bomb, nicknamed Fat man, used Plutonium-239.

Nagasaki implosion type bomb:

The Plutonium is placed around the middle of the bomb, and a source emitting neutrons is set off. The neutrons fission the plutonium and cause a super critical explosion. Conventional explosives were added to make the bomb more powerful.

Hiroshima gun-type bomb:

Two separate parts filled with uranium atoms- one at the front of the bomb, and one at the back on a rack. A detonator is used to fire the ...

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