OPPapers.com

The Atomic Bomb

The atomic bomb killed many innocent people, but it was necessary to end World War II. After World War II began in 1939, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt announced the neutrality of the United States. Many people in the United States thought that they should stay out of the war. The people of the United States wanted the Allied Forces to get credit for the victory in Europe. President Roosevelt also wanted an Allied victory because an Axis victory might endanger democracies throughout the world. The United States equipped nations fighting the Axis with ships, tanks, aircraft, and other supplies for war. The Axis did not agree with the indirect involvement of the United States. Japan wanted the United States to stop sending supplies to China, however the United States refused to stop. The United States opposed the expansion of Japan in Asia, so they cut off important exports to Japan.
A surprise attack was ordered by Japan on December 7, 1941. The target was the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Japanese planes bombed the naval base killing about 3,000 people and destroying many warships, aircraft carriers, and submarines. This was a catalyst that brought the United States into World War II.
Albert Einstein predicted that mass could be converted into energy early in the century. In 1939, physicists discovered that neutrons striking the element uranium caused the atoms to split apart. Physicists also found out that among the pieces of a split atom were newly produced neutrons. These might come into contact with other uranium nuclei, caused them to split, and start a chain reaction. If the chain reaction were limited to a moderate pace, a new source of energy could be the result. The chain reaction could release energy rapidly and with explosive force.
A few Hungarian-born physicists were frightened by the possibility that Germany might produce an atomic bomb. They insisted that Albert Einstein inform President Roosevelt about the possibility of...