6 aug 06

Greetings,

August 6, 1945 is the anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing.

BWX Technologies holds contracts to manage and operate the Los Alamos National Laboratory, Idaho National Laboratory, the Pantex Plant, and the Y-12 National Security Complex.

Y-12 produced the uranium-235 for “Little Boy,” the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

As it says on its website, “BWXT is the premier manager of complex, high-consequence nuclear and national security operations. We are disciplined operators and managers of nuclear production facilities, who deliver enduring value and customer confidence.”

Yes, the consequences are high. It has nothing to do with value and customer confidence.

"Little Boy"

After being released, it took about a minute for Little Boy to reach the point of explosion. Little Boy exploded at approximately 8:15 a.m. (Japan Standard Time) when it reached an altitude of 2,000 ft above the building that is today called the "A-Bomb Dome."

The July 24, 1995 issue of Newsweek writes:

"A bright light filled the plane," wrote Col. Paul Tibbets, the pilot of the Enola Gay, the B-29 that dropped the first atomic bomb. "We turned back to look at Hiroshima. The city was hidden by that awful cloud...boiling up, mushrooming." For a moment, no one spoke. Then everyone was talking. "Look at that! Look at that! Look at that!" exclaimed the co-pilot, Robert Lewis, pounding on Tibbets's shoulder. Lewis said he could taste atomic fission; it tasted like lead. Then he turned away to write in his journal. "My God," he asked himself, "what have we done?"
(special report, "Hiroshima: August 6, 1945")

The Little Boy generated an enormous amount of energy in terms of air pressure and heat. In addition, it generated a significant amount of radiation (Gamma ray and neutrons) that subsequently caused devastating human injuries.

The people who saw the Little Boy often say "We saw another sun in the sky when it exploded." The heat and the light generated by the Little Boy were far stronger than bombs which they had seen before. When the heat wave reached ground level it burnt all before it including people.

The strong wind generated by the bomb destroyed most of the houses and buildings within a 1.5 miles radius. When the wind reached the mountains, it was reflected and again hit the people in the city center. The wind generated by Little Boy caused the most serious damage to the city and people.

The radiation generated by the bomb caused long-term problems to those affected. Many people died within the first few months and many more in subsequent years because of radiation exposure. Some people had genetic problems which sometimes resulted in having malformed babies or being unable to have children.

It is believed that more than 140,000 people died by the end of the year. They were citizens including students, soldiers and Koreans who worked in factories within the city. The total number of people who have died due to the bomb is estimated to be 200,000.

Peace.

Hiroshima Peace Site