'Oppenheimer occupies a central role in our history for leading the nation's atomic efforts during World War II and planting the seeds for the Department of Energy's national laboratories.'
When Robert Oppenheimer’s first atomic bomb exploded on July 16, 1945, at 5:30 a.m., it caused seismographs in Tucson to record an earthquake wave generated by seismic energies radiating through the earth from the northeast. The scientific equipment at the University of Arizona recorded the atomic explosion 280 miles away at the Trinity site in southwestern New Mexico. The light flash from the top-secret test was visible up to 180 miles.
Moments later, a bellowing, thundering sound echoed against the Sierra Oscura Mountains, the rocks, and the desert floor, for what seemed an eternity to Oppenheimer’s staff responsible for recording the blast. The sound was deafening as it bounced over and around the Jornada del Muerto. This area in the desert is known ominously from Spanish times as the Dead Man’s Trail — the Journey of Death.
1940 census data indicates up to 500,000 people lived within a 150-mile radius of the test site; some families lived as close as 12 miles from Trinity. Civilians within a 50-mile radius of the area were stunned and bewildered by the blast. They were not warned before the test or evacuated after the test. People were likely exposed to deadly radioactive fallout and developed cancer and other diseases due to exposure to the blast.
Oppenheimer, the father of the bomb that ended the war, was nominated for the Nobel Prize for physics three times, in 1946, 1951, and 1967, but never won. Julius Robert Oppenheimer died of throat cancer on Feb. 18, 1967, at age 62.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Department of Justice to investigate city of Memphis and its police department | CNNThe Justice Department said Thursday it has opened a civil rights investigation into the city of Memphis and its police department, which came under fire following the death of Tyre Nichols after a traffic stop in January.
Read more »
Justice Department Opens Broad Probe Into Memphis Police DepartmentThe Justice Department will open a civil-rights investigation into the Memphis Police Department, more than six months after the fatal police beating of Tyre Nichols
Read more »
'Oppenheimer' fans are paying hundreds to see the movie in IMAX 70mmThe Eras Tour for film buffs: Moviegoers are willing to pay hundreds of dollars on third-party resale sites to see 'Oppenheimer' in IMAX 70mm.
Read more »
The True Story Behind 'Oppenheimer's Communist Connections'Oppenheimer': The True Story Behind His Communist Connections
Read more »