Hiroshima

Hiroshima was the primary target of the first atomic bomb mission. The
mission went smoothly in every respect. The weather was good, and the
crew and equipment functioned perfectly. In every detail, the attack was
carried out exactly as planned, and the bomb performed exactly as expected.

The bomb exploded over Hiroshima at 8:15 on the morning of August 6, 1945.
About an hour previously, the Japanese early warning radar net had detected
the approach of some American aircraft headed for the southern part of
Japan. The alert had been given and radio broadcasting stopped in many
cities, among them Hiroshima. The planes approached the coast at a very
high altitude. At nearly 8:00 A.M., the radar operator in Hiroshima
determined that the number of planes coming in was very small - probably
not more than three - and the air raid alert was lifted. The normal radio
broadcast warning was given to the people that it might be advisable to go
to shelter if B-29's were actually sighted, but no raid was expected beyond
some sort of reconnaissance. At 8:15 A.M., the bomb exploded with a
blinding flash in the sky, and a great rush of air and a loud rumble of
noise extended for many miles around the city; the first blast was soon
followed by the sounds of falling buildings and of growing fires, and a
great cloud of dust and smoke began to cast a pall of darkness over the
city.

At 8:16 A.M., the Tokyo control operator of the Japanese Broadcasting
Corporation noticed that the Hiroshima station had gone off the air. He
tried to use another telephone line to reestablish his program, but it too
had failed. About twenty minutes later the Tokyo railroad telegraph center