Countdown 1945: The Extraordinary Story of the Atomic Bomb and the 116 Days That Changed the World

In the city of Hiroshima, Hideko Tamura has managed to get a letter back to her parents, telling them how miserable she and the other children are, and that they want to return home. She and a friend have hatched a plan to write their uncensored letters and sneak off to mail them on their own, rather than giving the letters to their caretakers to mail for them. Hideko and her friend Miyoshi receive word, and finally—on August 4th—are greeted by their mothers, who have come to take them home. Staying in town that night, they all agree to return to Hiroshima the next morning.

On Tinian, meanwhile, the bombing crew has just landed after a successful test run. Tibbets gathers his men together at 3 p.m. that afternoon and briefs them on the final details of what they are really all there to do: “The bomb you are going to drop is something new in the history of warfare. It is the most destructive weapon ever produced” (199). They are briefed on everything necessary for them to know, even shown the special goggles they will be wearing to protect themselves from the flash of the blast. The crew is left in awe wondering about the implication of what they are about to do.

General Farrell awakes Saturday morning on Tinian, wanting to know the weather report. The report states the weather will be clear over Japan the next day, and the orders go out: the bomb will finally be launched the next day on August 6th: “The planes would take off at 2:45 a.m. for the six-hour, 1,500-mile flight to Hiroshima” (202-203).

Deak Parsons, however, has an important suggestion to make. He recently saw numerous planes crash and burn after failing to make it off the runway, and so he is concerned about taking off with fully armed atomic weapons. He suggests only arming the bombs after the planes are already in the air to minimize the risk of an accidental triggering. For their parts, Beser is able to arm their plane with radar-jamming devices while Tibbets finally names the plane and has it painted onto the side of the hull: the Enola Gay. As last-minute preparations are made, the full crew lines up for a group photo before saying their goodbyes.

At midnight Tibbets gathers the crew one last time before takeoff, finally revealing the full truth of their mission: they will be dropping an atomic bomb. They review the plan, they pass out cyanide pills in case of an emergency situation, and the chaplain says a prayer before they head to breakfast for one last meal. The crew gathers their personal belongings before heading to the plane to check up on their personal duties before takeoff.

They find the runway completely lit up with lights and scores of cameramen, journalists, and people to see them off, “like a Hollywood premiere” (218). The plane is loaded down heavier than it had ever been at 150,000—more than 15,000 pounds over the max weight limit—and the crew is worried about getting the necessary lift to rise into the air. Tibbets takes off in the Enola Gay.

After three hours the strike plane meets up with two planes over the island of Iwo Jima that will accompany them all the way to the strike zone. At less than an hour until strike they receive confirmation of clear weather over their primary target, and confirm that they will be attacking Hiroshima. With ten minutes to go, the plane settles into its bombing position: “The Enola Gay was at an altitude of 31,060 feet with an airspeed of 200 miles per hour when Hiroshima came into view” (225). At three minutes until strike the official bombing run begins. With less than a minute left they confirm that their landmark has come into view. They open the bay doors for the bomb, release the bomb, “Little Boy,” from its mooring, and Tibbets immediately pulls the plane into a sharp banking maneuver to speed back away from the drop site as fast as possible. After just a few seconds, they know the bomb has hit: “a flash—brighter than the midday sun—lit up the plane in white light” (226).

When the bomb detonates, “the Enola Gay [is] six miles away, flying as fast as her engines could take her” (227), but Tibbets knows they are still in danger. Caron, who sits in the tail gunner’s seat, sees the shock wave coming and raises the alarm. The plane is hit with the wave but almost as soon as the crew realizes what is happening, it is over. Tibbets turns the plane back around to see what has happened over the blast sight, and the crew watches in awe as the mushroom cloud rises high above them, 45,000 feet into the air. Quickly Tibbets turns the plane once more and heads towards Tinian.

In Hiroshima, Hideko Tamura is awoken by an explosion and immediately seeks shelter. With the initial shock causing the collapse of their home, Hideko realizes they need to get out and look for the safest place in the nearby area: “‘The fires are coming next. Please, let’s go. Let’s go to the river!’” (231). Without waiting she starts out for the river, not realizing the extent to which her hometown has been demolished. At the same time, President Truman receives word that the bomb has been dropped, while he is still en route from England back to the States. Back in Washington, meanwhile, Eben Ayers—the White House press secretary—announces the use of the nuclear weapon and begins to field questions.

In Los Alamos, Oppenheimer hears the news on the radio. Some on the base begin to celebrate the success of the mission; others refuse to celebrate, considering it “ghoulish” (235) to celebrate the death and destruction they have been directly responsible for creating. Back in the Pacific, Tibbets and his crew prepare to land the Enola Gay to complete the last step in their mission. Their mood is a somber one—" They had dropped bombs many times, seen them explode and smoke rise from targets below. But this? This was beyond comprehension” (237). They land just before 3 p.m. and are greeted by more than two hundred military personnel who have gathered to congratulate them.

The second bomb is detonated over Nagasaki on August 9th, although this time with a different crew, as Tibbets refuses to fly the mission. The mission experiences trouble from the start, such as problems with the fuel system, issues arming the bomb in mid-flight, and poor weather over the drop sight. The bomb is dropped late and aimed poorly, missing its target by two miles. Nevertheless, it still wreaks untold destruction, leveling a three-mile-wide sector of the city and close to 20,000 buildings.

The second attack is the last straw for the Japanese forces and the emperor, who finally surrender the next day on August 10th. The formal surrender is accepted by Truman on August 14th, ending the last part of the Second World War. The total death toll of the Second World War is staggering, as estimates put the final death toll at 72 million, “including 47 million civilians” (246). The war might finally be over, but it is only the beginning of a brand-new era in which nuclear warfare is now a grave threat.

After the use of the weapon, criticism of the nuclear attack began almost immediately. Newspapers like The New York Times, and the Chicago Tribune ran editorial pieces questioning not just the ethics of using the weapon, but also the situation in which its use had now thrust the world. Leo Szilard, who had started the petition among the scientists on the project, joined with Albert Einstein to create “the Emergency Committee of Atomic Scientists” (249) in order to encourage the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

While more than 80% of Americans polled agreed with the decision to drop the atom bombs, it did not stop politicians, academics, and cultural critics from continuing to sound the alarm and raise serious questions about the ethical implementation of nuclear energy, both in war and in peace. While Oppenheimer regretted the decision and was wracked by anxiety and second thoughts over his participation, Truman never wavered in his affirmation that they had made the right decision.