Which bomb was worse Hiroshima or Nagasaki?
The plutonium-type bomb detonated over Nagasaki actually had a greater explosive power than that used on Hiroshima. The reason for the greater number of casualties in the latter city is to be sought in large part in differences in the physical features of the two cities.
What made the US bomb Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
The Japanese had publicly stated their intent to fight to the bitter end, and were using tactics such as kamikaze attacks, in which pilots would suicide-dive against US warships. Therefore, the then US president, Harry Truman, authorised the use of atomic bombs in order to make Japan surrender, which it did.
When was the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombed?
August 6, 1945
Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki/Start dates
How big were the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs?
More powerful than the one used at Hiroshima, the bomb weighed nearly 10,000 pounds and was built to produce a 22-kiloton blast. The topography of Nagasaki, which was nestled in narrow valleys between mountains, reduced the bomb’s effect, limiting the destruction to 2.6 square miles.
Is Hiroshima and Nagasaki still radioactive?
The radiation in Hiroshima and Nagasaki today is on a par with the extremely low levels of background radiation (natural radioactivity) present anywhere on Earth. It has no effect on human bodies. Residual radiation was emitted later. Roughly 80% of all residual radiation was emitted within 24 hours.
How much of Hiroshima was destroyed?
The firestorm in Hiroshima destroyed 13 square kilometres (five square miles) of the city. Almost 63% of the buildings in Hiroshima were completely destroyed and many more were damaged. In total, 92% of the structures in the city were either destroyed or damaged by blast and fire.
How far away from a nuclear bomb is safe?
Death is highly likely and radiation poisoning is almost certain if one is caught in the open with no terrain or building masking effects within a radius of 0–3 km from a 1 megaton airburst, and the 50% chance of death from the blast extends out to ~8 km from the same 1 megaton atmospheric explosion.