Questions tagged [nuclear-weapons]
Questions about the history of nuclear weapons.
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Was there a plan to use nuclear weapons for terrain modification in North America?
I remember reading a story once about a plan to build a seaport and modify a significant amount of the coastline at once by using a nuclear explosion. I can't find anything about it now when I try ...
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Did the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki contribute to Japan's surrender?
Even before the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the war situation had developed not necessarily to Japan's advantage. Allied forces had been taking island after island, and were firebombing ...
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What were the EMP effects, if any, of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) is generated from any atomic bomb, as far as I know. An EMP could destroy the electronics of many devices, including lighting, electric motors, radios, phones, etc.
So why ...
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Why is there less public attention on the firebombing of Japan compared to its atomic bombing? [closed]
Virtually everybody has heard of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. However, the firebombing of Japan is nowhere near as well known, or talked about, at least by non-Japanese.
Why is there ...
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What did the Japanese believe about the USA capability of making/using additional atomic bombs?
Clearly the Japanese believed that if they did not surrender another atomic bomb would be used on them.
However how soon did they believe this would happen?
And how many atomic bombs did they ...
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End of WWII: potential U.S. atomic bomb production rate
Inspired by Did the United States have a third atomic bomb to drop on Japan?. Imagine Japan did not surrender after 2 bombs (just preferring to die), or a war with the Soviet Union breaks out, or for ...
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Have there been any nuclear accidents in the US at nuclear facilities which were not "commercial"?
In a feature called "On This Day," the March 28th, 2015 issue of the New York Times recounted how "On March 28, 1979, America's worst commercial nuclear accident occurred inside the Unit Two reactor ...
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How far away could one be and still see the atom bomb explosions?
In the film Empire of the Sun (1987), the Nagasaki atom bomb explosion is depicted as being visible (albeit faintly) from Shanghai. Would that really have been possible? According to Google, the two ...
user3521
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What evidence is there to suggest that 'fear of the bomb' is culturally specific? [closed]
In the Western World, we have woven a cultural motif for our feelings about nuclear weapons. Even Scientific American would go so far as to say, "We learned to fear the bomb".
Now some of this is ...
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What relief efforts did the Japanese attempt after the atomic bombings?
Obviously, once the atomic bombs dropped in 1945, the war was almost over. There wasn't much time to rebuild, or even offer aid, to the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki before the Japanese ...
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Why would the heads of the Manhattan Project have been imprisoned in the event of its failure?
In The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes, Secretary of War Henry Stimson is quoted as saying, after the Trinity test and Potsdam declaration but before the bombing of Hiroshima:
I have ...
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Why did so many countries agree to the Non-Proliferation Treaty?
The Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 contains (among others) provisions that amount to the following:
There are five countries (the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, and China) that ...
user4656
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Why didn't Britain's nuclear weapons deter Argentina from invading the Falklands?
The United Kingdom has nuclear weapons. All the [major] political parties support this policy. A common justification heard is that they are a deterrent against foreign aggression. For example:
UK ...
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Why didn't the US choose to demolish Tokyo with an atom bomb?
Tokyo was Japan's capital. Why didn't the US choose Tokyo to demolish with Atom Bomb?
Bonus Question: What factors decided to bring Hiroshima and Nagasaki on table?
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Why did the US drop nuclear bombs on a weakened Japan? [closed]
Why did the United States drop two nuclear bombs on the Japanese mainland? It appeared that Japan was ready to surrender.
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