-
The first Nuke
The first Nuke was tested in manhattan, called the "Manhattan Project" -
Drop on Hiroshima
The US detonates a uranium bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima, killing more than 140,000 people within months. Many more later die from radiation-related illnesses. -
Drop on Nagasaki
The US explodes a plutonium bomb over Nagasaki. An estimated 74,000 people die by the end of 1945. Little can be done to ease the suffering of the victims who survive the blast. -
UN ends atomic bomb use
In its first resolution, the UN General Assembly calls for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons and sets up a commission to deal with the problem of the atomic discovery. -
Soviet union tests its first nuke
The Soviet Union explodes a nuclear weapon code-named “First Lightning” in Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan. It becomes the second nation to develop and successfully test a nuclear device. -
UK tests first nuke in Australia
The UK conducts its first nuclear test at Montebello Islands off the coast of Western Australia. It later conducts a series of tests at Maralinga and Emu Fields in South Australia. -
The US tests the first Hydrogen bomb
The US raises the stakes in the nuclear arms race by detonating the first hydrogen bomb at Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands. It is 500 times more powerful than the Nagasaki bomb. -
Bravo test
The US detonates a 17-megaton hydrogen bomb, “Bravo”, at Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean, contaminating a Japanese fishing boat, Lucky Dragon, and residents of Rongelap and Utirik. -
Russel-Einstein manefesto
Bertrand Russell, Albert Einstein and other leading scientists issue a manifesto warning of the dangers of nuclear war and urging all governments to resolve disputes peacefully.
