ATOMIC ENERGY HARNESSED N GREAT SCIENTIFIC ACHIEVEMENT President
Truman
the greatest Atomic
announces
successful
scientific research effort
bomb
equivalent
employing
project
to 20,000
125,000
costing
people
T H E m o s t closely guarded secret of ' World W a r II—development, a n d ultimately the use of atomic energy t o destroy t h e fasfc-cruinbling Japanese empire—was dramatically announced August 6 b y President T r u m a n . I n one of t h e m o s t historic statements ever to e m a n a t e from t h e White House, the President disclosed certain of the d e tails of t h e super-super-hush-hush story of all t i m e — t h e life-and-death race of American, British, and Canadian scientists on t h e one h a n d , a n d German scientists on t h e other t o harness the energy of the a t o m . So secret has been t h e project t h a t only a small select circle h a v e known all of t h e intimate details, although thousands h a v e been employed on t h e project in different capacities. Indeed, i t has been said t h a t since t h e project originated those "in the k n o w " h a v e n o t dared even to whisper the word atom without fear of disclosing vital information t o our enemies concerning t h e $2,000,000,000 atomic bomb project. M o s t elaborate precautions were t a k e n from t h e beginning to prevent even an inkling of w h a t was being undertaken from reaching G e r m a n y and Japan. I t was known t h a t Germany was also feverishly struggling t o produce atomic bombs, and military officials and top-flight scientists of t h e United States, Great Britain, and C a n a d a did not draw a comfortable b r e a t h until V - E D a y , fearing t h a t the Nazis might succeed in harnessing the latent devastating power of atomic energy. T h e initial combat target use of the bomb culminated 3 y e a r s of intensive effort o n the p a r t of science and industry, working in cooperation with the military.
of
in history . . .
dropped on Japan on Aug. 5 . . . Huge and production
results
tons of
TNT
development $2,000,000,000
was well-kept
secret.
I t is heralded as t h e greatest achievement of t h e combined efforts of science, industry, labor, and t h e military in all history. President T r u m a n and Secretary of War, H e n r y L. Stimson, m a d e the first announcements of the new weapon, declaring t h a t the atomic bomb h a s an explosive force such as t o stagger t h e imagination. Improvements were revealed as forthcoming which will increase severalfold t h e present effectiveness. While t h e use in combat has permitted slight relaxation in t h e secrecy t h a t has cloaked the project, t h e W a r D e p a r t m e n t declined for security reasons t o disclose exact methods by which t h e bombs are produced, or the nature of their action, and
requested that the press and the radio, as well as all those connected with the project, refrain from disclosing other information than, that released. In broad outline, the W a r D e p a r t m e n t made the following disclosures, August 6: Late in 1939 the possibilities of using atomic energy for military purposes were brought to th.e attention of President Roosevelt, who appointed a committee to survey the problem. In June 1942, sufficient progress had been made to warrant a great expansion of the project and the assumption of its direction by t h e W a r Department, with Maj. Gen. Leslie It. Groves, in executive charge. By December 1942, a decision had been reached t o proceed with plant construction on a large scale. Two of the plants were to be located at t h e Clinton Engineer Works in T e n nessee and a third a t the Hanford Engineer Works in the State of Washington. A icial laboratory t o deal with the man., chnica.1 problems involved was t o be located in an isolated area in t h e vicinity of S a n t a Fe, 1\T, Mex., u n d e r the direction of J. Robert Oppenheimer, theoretical physicist of t h e University of California. Other manufacturing plants much smaller in scale are located in t h e United States and C a n a d a , and facilities of certain laboratories of the universities of
O n e of production ercas at Hanford Engineer Works, near Pasco, Wash., where new atomic bomb dropped on Japan was developed. This factory is at Richland, Wash.
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A t o m i c Energy Harnessed California, Chicago, Columbia, Iowa State College, and other schools as well as certain industrial laboratories were utilized. Congress h a s appropriated up t o J u n e 30, 1945, $1,950,000,000 for the operation of these huge projects. Atomic bombs have been developed with the full knowledge of and cooperation of t h e United Kingdom and Canada, and substantial patent control has been accomplished in these countries.
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A uranium-bearing ore is the vital raw material in t h e production of the wearpon. Steps have been taken and will continue t o be taken t o ensure adequate supplies of this mineral. T h e series of discoveries which led t o development of the atomic bomb starrted a t the turn of the century when radioactivity became known to science. P r i o r t o 1939 t h e scientific work in "this field was world wide, b u t more partdcu-
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larly in t h e U n i t e d States, t h e United Kingdom, G e r m a n y , F r a n c e , Italy, a n d Denmark. I t is k n o w n t h a t G e r m a n y worked desperately to solve t h e problem of controlling atomic energy. Britain, first suffering repeated air a t tacks early in t h e war, agreed t o a concentration of t h e atomic b o m b project in t h e United S t a t e s and transferred m a n y of h e r scientists t o this country to assist.
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President Truman's Statement This announcement mark a great
by the President
turning
point
as one of the most important
in civilization
bomb h a d more power t h a n 20,000 tons of T N T . I t had more t h a n 2,000 times t h e blast power of the British "Grand Slam" which is the largest bomb ever y e t used in the history of warfare. The Japanese began t h e war from the air a t Pearl Harbor. They have been repaid many fold. And the end is n o t y e t . With this bomb we have now added a new and revolutionary increase in destruction to supplement the growing power of our armed forces. I n their present form these bombs are now in production a n d even more powerful forms are in development. I t is a n atomic bomb. I t is a harnessing of the basic power of t h e universe. T h e force from wfdch the sun draws i t s power has been loosed against those who brought war to t h e F a r East. Before 1939, it was t h e accepted belief of scientists t h a t it was theoretically possible to release atomic energy. B u t no one knew any practical method of doing it. By 1942, however, we knew t h a t t h e Germans were working feverishly to find a way t o add atomic energy to t h e other engines of war with which they hoped to enslave t h e world. B u t they failed. We m a y be grateful to Providence t h a; t t h e Germans got t h e V P s a n d the V2 s late and in limited quantities and even more grateful t h a t they did not get the atomic bomb a t all. T h e b a t t l e of the laboratories held fateful risks for us as well as t h e battles of t h e air, land and sea, and we have now won t h e b a t t l e of t h e laboratories as we h a v e won the other battles, i Beginning in 1940, before Pearl Harbor, scientific knowledge useful in war was pooled between * the United States and Great Britain, a n d many priceless helps to our victories h a v e come from that arrangement. U n d e r t h a t general policy the research o n t h e atomic boznb was begun. W i t h American and British scientists working together we entered the race of discovery against the Germans. T h e United States h a d available the large n u m b e r of scientists of distinction in t h e m a n y needed areas of knowledge. It had the tremendous industrial a n d finan-
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States may v^ell
and go down
documents of all
IXTEEN hours ago an American airplane dropped one bomb on Hiroshima, an S important Japanese a r m y base. T h a t
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of the United
in hist&ry
time.
cial resources necessary for the project a n d they could be devoted to it without undue impairment of other vital w a r work. In the United States t h e laboratory work and the production plants, onwtiich a substantial s t a r t had already been made, would be out of reach of enemy bombing, while a t t h a t time Britain was exposed to constant air a t t a c k and was still threatened with t h e possibility of invasion. For these reasons Prime Minister Churchill and President Roosevelt agr-eed t h a t it was wise to carry o n the project here. We now have two great plants ^,nd m a n y lesser works devoted t o the procluction of atomic power. Employment dluring peak construction numbered 125^000 a n d over 65,000 individuals are even mow engaged in operating t h e plants. MLany have worked there for 2 v 2 years. HFew know w h a t t h e y h a v e been producing. T h e y see great quantities of material going in and they see nothing coming out of tkiese plants, for t h e physical size of the explosive charge is exceedingly small. We have s p e n t S2,O0O,GOO,00O on the greatest scientific gamble in history a n d r w on. B u t the greatest marvel is not the size of the enterprise, its secrecy, or its erost, b u t the achievement of scientific brairus in putting together infinitely complex pieces of knowledge held by m a n y men in differe n t fields of science into a workable p-ian. And hardly less marvelous has been the capacity of industry t o design, and of labor t o operate, t h e machines a n d m e t h ods to do things never done before so -&hat t h e brain child of m a n y minds came f o r t h in physical shape and performed a s it -was supposed to do. Both science a n d industry worked u n d e r t h e direction of t h e United States Arxny, which achieved a unique success iii ananaging so diverse a problem in the advancem e n t of knowledge in a n amazingly sliort time. I t is doubtful if such another co^ Sanation could be got together in t h e world. W h a t has been done is t h e greatest achievem e n t of organized science i n history. It was done u n d e r high pressure and -witnout failure. We are now prepared t o obliterate m o r e rapidly a n d completely every productive enterprise t h e J a p a n e s e have above ground
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in a n y city. W e shall destroy their docks, (heir factories a n d their communications. Let there be no m i s t a k e ; w e shall completely destroy J a p a n ' s power t o make war. I t was to spare t h e J a p a n e s e people from utter destruction t h a t the u l t i m a t u m of July 26 was issued a t P o t s d a m . Their leaders p r o m p t l y rejected t h a t u l t i m a t u m . If t h e y do not now accept our terms t h e y may expect a rain of ruin from the air, the like of which has never been seen o n this earth. B e h i n d this air a t t a c k will follow sea. and land forces in such n u m b e r s and power as t h e y have not y e t seen a n d with, the fighting skill of which they a r e already well a w a r e . T h e Secretary of War, who has kept in personal touch w i t h all phases of t h e project, will immediately m a k e public a. statement giving further details. H i s s t a t e m e n t will give facts concerning the sites a t O a k Ridge near Knoxville, Term., a n d a t Richland n e a r Pasco, Wash., a n d an installation n e a r S a n t a F e , N. Mex. Although t h e workers a t t h e sites have been m a l d n g materials to b e used in producing t h e greatest destructive force in history, t h e y h a v e n o t t h e m selves been in d a n g e r beyond t h a t of many other occupations, for t h e u t m o s t care has been t a k e n of their safety. T h e fact t h a t we can release atomic energy ushers in a new era in m a n ' s understanding of n a t u r e ' s forces. Atomic energy m a y in t h e future supplement t h e power t h a t now comes from, coal, oil, a n d falling water, b u t a t p r e s e n t i t cannot b e produced o n a basis t o compete with t h e m commercially. Before t h a t comes t h e r e must be a long period of intensive research. I t has never b e e n t h e habit of t h e v~ientists of t h i s c o u n t r y or the policy of t h i s Government t o withhold from t h e world scientific knowledge. Normally, therefore, everything a b o u t t h e work w i t h a t o m i c energy would be m a d e public. B u t under p r e s e n t circumstances it is not intended t o divulge t h e technical processes of production or all t h e military applications, pending further examination of possible m e t h o d s of protecting us a n d the rest of the world from t h e danger of sudden destruction. I shall recommend t h a t t h e Congress of the United S t a t e s consider p r o m p t l y t h e establishment of a n a p p r o p r i a t e commission t o control t h e production and u s e of a t o m i c power w i t h i n t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s . I shall give further consideration a n d m a k e further recommendations to t h e Congress as t o how a t o m i c power c a n become a powerful a n d f'oic^fu! influence toward the m a i n t e n a n c e of Wv rid peace.
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Chemical and Engineering News Insert, August 1 0 , 1945 Combined Policy Committee, composed at the outset of Secretary of War Stimson, Dr. Bush, and Dr. Conant for the United States; Field Marshall Sir John Dill and Col. J. J. Llewellin for the United Kingdom; and Mr. C. D. Howe for Canada. Col. Llewellin was later replaced b}r Sir Ronald I. Campbell, who in turn was succeeded by the Earl of Halifax; the late Field Marshall Dill was succeeded by Field Marshall Sir Henry Maitland Wilson. The United States' members have had as their scientific adviser Dr. Richard C. Tolman; the British, Sir James Chadwick; and the Canadians, Dean C. J. MacKenzie. The dropping of the first atomic bomb upon military targets brings to fruition a spectacular discovery in the field of science. In its development it appears that many decades ahead there will ultimately flow multiple benefits for all mankind. To ensure the study of the best use of the discovery the Secretary of War has appointed an Interim Committee consisting of the following: The Secretary of War, chairman, James E. Byrnes, now Secretary of State, Ralph A. Bard, former Undersecretary of the Navy, William L. Clayton, Assistant Secretary of State, Dr. Bush, Dr. Conant, Dr. Karl T. Compton, president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and George L. Harrison, alternate chairman, special consultant to the Secretary of War, and president of the New York Life Insurance Co. Assisting this group as a scientific panel are J. R. Oppenheimer, E. O. Lawrence, A. H. Compton, and Enrico Fermi.
Secret city, O a k Ridge, near Knoxville, Tenn., mushroomed into existence when "Manhattan Project" became factory reality. Hospital is in foreground in this airview looking east. Dormitories and business section of town are in background
The attention of President Roosevelt was invited to the potentialities of the atomic bomb in 1939. The research which had been conducted on a small scale with Navy funds was put on a greatlyexpanded basis. At the end of 1941 progress had been sufficient to warrant additional expansion. In the meantime the project had been placed under the direction of the Office of Scientific Research and Development, with Vannevar Bush, Director of OSRD in charge. At the same time the President appointed a General Policy Group, consisting of the then Vice President Hemy A. Wallace, Secretary of War, Henry L. Stimson, Gen. George C. Marshall, Dr. James B. Conant, and Dr. Bush. •The General Policy Group recommended in June 1942 that the atomic bomb project be greatly expanded and placed under the direction of the War Department. This action was taken and Maj. Gen. Groves, experienced and resourceful U. S. Army construction engineer, was placed in complete control. At the same time, in addition to the General Policy Group there was appointed a Military Policy Committee consisting of Dr. Bush, chairman, Dr. Conant, his alternate, Lt. Gen. Wilhelm B. Styer, U.S.A., and Rear Admiral William R. Purnell, U.S.N. The need for the weapon and its potential value led to the decision in December 1942 to start construction of an industrial empire that was eventually to consist of entire cities and employ upwards of 125,000. Two of the plants were constructed on a 59,000-acre government reservation IS miles west of Knoxville, Tenn. It assumed the name of Oak Ridge and became the fifth largest city in the state. The third plant was erected at the Han-
ford Engineer Works on a 450,000acre government t r a c t 15 miles northwest of Pasco, Wash. This became the city of Richland. A special laboratory was established in an isolated area of N"ew Mexico, about 30 miles northwest of Santa Fe. The ramifications of the atomic bomb project reached such proportions that in August 1943 it was decided to establish a
Tested in New M e x i c o First test of atomic before Tension
dawn among
the detonation
in
bomb desolate
scientists deadline
carried
out
section
of
and
others
under the
dramatic
New
present
Mexican was
conditions desert.
tremendous
as
approached.
KA ANKIND'S successful entrance to a. new ' * • age, the Atomic Age, was ushered in July 16, 1945, before the eyes of a tense group of renowned scientists and military men gathered in the desert land of New Mexico to witness the first end result of their two billion dollar effort. Here in a remote section of "the Alamogordo Air Base, 120 miles southeast of Albuquerque, the first man-made atomic explosion, the outstanding achievement of nuclear science, was achieved at 5:30 A.M. of that day. Darkening heavens poured forth rain and lightning immediately up to zero hour to heighten the drama. Mounted on a steel tower, the weapon, destined to change war as we know it, or which may even be the instrumentality to end all major wars, was set off with an impact which signalized man's entrance into a new physical world. Suc-
cess was greater than the most ambitious estimate. A small amount of matter, the product of a chain of huge specially constructed industrial plants, was made to release the energy of the universe locked up within the atom from the beginning of time. A fabulous achievement had been reached. Speculative theory, barely established in prewar laboratories, had been projected into a practicality. This phase of the atomic bomb project which was headed by Maj. Gen. Leslie It. Groves, was under the direction of J. R. Oppenheimer, theoretical physicist of the University of California. He is to be credited with achieving implementation of atomic energy for military purposes. Tension before the actual detonation was at a tremendous pitch. Failure was an ever-present possibility. Too great a 1403
