The United States detonates the world's first atomic bomb at a test site in New Mexico on July 16, 1945. Less than a month later, atomic bombs were dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The devastation led to Japan's unconditional surrender and brought an end to World War II. read more
They chose Hiroshima. "Hiroshima is compact," Wellerstein says. "If you put a bomb like this in the middle of it, you end up destroying almost the entirety of the city." Also, Hiroshima was a real military target. There were factories and other facilities there. The Army estimated the bomb killed 70,000 to 80,000 people. The war ended. read more