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Nuclear Arms Race
A competition for supremacy in nuclear warfare between the United States and the Soviet Union that also involved the allies of each side. -
David Lilienthal and the GAC
David Lilienthal, Director of the Atomic Energy Commission in 1949, began to instruct the General Advisory Committe of the Commission to further study and research a more powerful nuclear weapon, the Hydrogen Bomb. -
Lilienthal to President Truman
The GAC discussed the potential dangers of developing hydrogen bombs in the United States. After two days of debate, the Committee recommended an expansion of the production of atomic weapons. Agreeing with the conclusions drawn by the GAC, Lilienthal submitted a report in October 1949 to President who referred the matter to a commitee of three; Lilienthal, Dean Acheson and Louis Johnson to consult the matter. Truman. -
Endorsement of the Hydrogen Bomb
Dean Acheson and Louis Johnson endorsed the research and production of the H-bomb while Lilienthal remained steadfast in his opposition to the proposal. -
Soviet's Nuclear Arsenal
Intelligence Committee predicts build up of Soviet nuclear arsenal and a possible attack against the United States. -
AEC and the Hydrogen Bomb; Arms Race Tension
The President directed the AEC to develop a program specifically geared toward the investigation and eventual production of H-bombs. This decision, in conjunction with the Soviet response to design their own “super,” escalated the arms race and heightened the distrust between the two superpowers for years to come -
Father of the Hydrogen Bomb
Physicist Edward Teller, who is considered by many as the father of the Hydrogen Bomb, came up with a newly designed H-Bomb with mathematician Stanislaw Ulam. This design was predicted to be the best design. -
Hydrogen Bomb Facility
Savannah River, South Carolina became the location for the United States hydrogen bomb production facility. This building also produced tritium for the United States nuclear arsenal. -
"MIKE"
The United States detonated its first successful hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean under the codename "Mike". This gives the US an advantage in the Nuclear Arms Race. -
Aftermath of Mike
The cloud created by this explosion was about 100 miles wide and 25 miles high. The explosion left behind a crater more than a mile wide, and destroyed life on the surrounding islands. No one predicted the bomb would be so powerful. -
USSR HYdrogen Bomb
Being behind in the Nuclear Arms Race, the USSR quickly designs their own Hydrogen bomb and test it at the Semipalatinsk test site in northern Kazakhstan. -
The Bravo Test
The U.S. Atomic Energy Commission and Department of Defense conducted a thermonuclear detonation that took place at Bikini Atoll.This test advanced knowledge, some miscalculations resulted in the largest US nuclear explosion. -
Nuclear Treaty
Limited Nuclear Test Ban goes into effect. This treaty prohibits nuclear weapons test. This treaty was signed with the United States, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union.
