The Demon Core
Harry Daghlian did not expect a simple breach of safety protocols to lead to his death. On the evening of August 21, 1945, Daghlian went alone to work on his project at the Los Alamos site. While adding reflective brick walls made up of tungsten carbide around a plutonium core, his equipment notified him that […]
The World’s First Nuclear Explosion
Let’s talk about the world’s first detonation of a nuclear weapon: Trinity. This test was conducted by the US Army at 5:30 a.m. on July 16, 1945 in Alamogordo, New Mexico. Once detonated, the tower where the atomic bomb sat was completely obliterated into dust. It was a success. The bomb’s success meant a lot for […]
An American Nuclear Energy Betrayal
In 2007 at the East Tennessee Technology Park (formerly known as the K-25 plant) in Oak Ridge, TN, a former janitor betrayed his country. Roy Lynn Oakley was a janitor at the K-25 plant in 2006 and 2007. Oakley contacted the French Embassy to determine the country’s interest in purchasing nuclear goods. He attempted to […]
From Army Engineer to Director of the Manhattan Project
Leslie groves as Major General Leslie Richard Groves grew up on military bases, as his father was an army chaplain. Naturally, he was drawn to the military, and joined the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1916, when he was 19 years old. He graduated fourth in his class in 1918, […]
“First Lady of Los Alamos”
Dorothy McKibbin visiting the entrance to the Santa Fe office Dorothy McKibbin was the Atomic Secretary during the Manhattan Project. She is the woman who kept the many Manhattan Project’s secrets. She also brought together the technicians, scientists and others involved together in order to work together to bring about their shared goal of creating […]
Ed Westcott
Edward Westcott with his equipment in Oak Ridge, TN James Edward Wescott, nicknamed Ed, was an American photographer. He was the First AEC Government Photographer in Oak Ridge, TN. He is highly revered for his work during the Manhattan Project and the Cold War from 1942 to 1966. Ed used two kinds of cameras to […]
Learn About the Nevada Test Site
Operation Buster-Jangle, the first U.S. nuclear field test conducted with live troops only 6 miles from the blast at the Nevada Test Site. The Nevada Test Site has a dense history that begins on December 18, 1950 when President Harry Truman authorized what was then called the “Nevada Proving Ground.” It wasn’t until 1955 that […]
The Importance of Oak Ridge, Tennessee
A Brief History Nicknamed the “Secret City,” Oak Ridge, Tennessee has a very interesting and important history. Still home to the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, Oak Ridge was built in 1942 in order to accommodate the Manhattan Project engineers and workers. It grew very quickly into a town of 75,000 residents in just 2.5 […]