On August 9, 1945, the American B-29 bomber, Bocks Car left Tinian carrying Fat Man, a plutonium implosion-type bomb. The primary target was the Kokura Arsenal, but upon reaching the target, they found that it was covered by a heavy ground haze and smoke, pilot Charles Sweeney turned to the secondary target of the Mitsubishi Torpedo Plant at Nagasaki.
Of the 286,00 people living in Nagasaki at the time of the blast, 74,000 were killed and another 75,000 sustained severe injuries.
Mushroom Cloud
Aerial photo of the mushroom cloud rising over Nagasaki, Japan.
Mushroom Cloud
The mushroom cloud rising over Nagasaki, Japan.
Nagasaki - Before and After
Aerial photographs show ground zero before and after the atomic bombing.
Mitsubishi Weapons Factory
Ruins of the Mitsubishi Weapons Factory.
Urakami Cathedral
One of Nagasaki's prominent landmarks.
Mitsubishi Steel and Armament Works
This plant was located about 2,500 feet (760 meters) downriver from ground zero.
Ruins
The Chinzei school from the east bank of the Urakami River.
Atomic Bomb Damage
Rubble and dead trees are still the dominant features of the Nagasaki landscape
Shinto Arch
A sacred Torii Gate stands erect over the completely destroyed area of a Shinto shrine in Nagasaki on October 1945.
Cathedral Statues
Statues in front of the south entrance to the Urakami Cathedral.
Urakami Cathedral
The completely destroyed Roman Catholic Church of Urakami.
Urakami Cathedral
The Urakami Cathedral, stands on a hill amid the rubble of a residential district east of ground zero.
Urakami Cathedral
The top of the Urakami Cathedral, lies in the rubble.
Mitsubishi Factory
Ruins of the Mitsubishi shipbuilding factory.
Mitsubishi Steel and Armament Works
This plant was located about 2,500 feet (760 meters) downriver from ground zero.
Mitsubishi Steel and Armament Works
This complex extending for nearly a half mile along the east bank of the Urakami River.
Atomic Bomb Damage
The terrain and smaller size of Nagasaki reduced the destruction of life and property.
Mitsubishi Steel and Armament Works
All that is left of the Mitsubishi weapons factory.
Mitsubishi Steel and Armament Works
The remains of Mitsubishi steel plant.
Nagasaki Medical College
The remains of the Nagasaki Medical College hospital.
Tori Shrine Gate
Tori shrine gate standing in devastated ruins.
Survivors
The survivors amongst the ruins of Nagasaki.
Brothers
Boy carrying his wounded brother on his back near Nagasaki station.
Mother and Child
An injured mother and child with food rations.
St. Mary in Grief Statue
The statue of St. Mary in Grief was on the left side
of the south wall entrance of the church.
St. John Statue
The statue of St. John was on the right side of the
south wall entrance.