Bomb: The Race to Build—and Steal—the World's Most Dangerous Weapon

“My life as a child did not prepare me for the fact that the world is full of cruel and bitter things.”

Robert Oppenheimer recalls his upbringing as a sickly youth who stayed home and read books while other kids played outside. Awkward socially but confident and determined in scientific matters, Oppenheimer deplores a world filled with greed and mismanagement. However, he even more earnestly despises the rise of Hitler, a dangerous tyrant whose plans for world domination threaten everything the scientist treasures. His story is not only that of someone captivated by the wonders of scientific discovery, but also of someone determined to prevent destructive forces from overrunning the world. The irony—that he oversees the creation of what is itself a highly destructive force—isn’t lost on him, and he hopes this new force can be set aside once it’s no longer needed. More than most others, he exemplifies the mixed Pride and Guilt Among the Weapon Makers.

“‘In starting and waging a war,’ [Hitler] told his generals, ‘it is not right that matters, but victory. Close your hearts to pity! Act brutally! The stronger man is right!’”

These are the words of someone who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. He gauges success simply on victory in battle; he has no concern for the welfare of others. Such a person, given the chance to obtain an unbeatable weapon, would unquestioningly strive to obtain it. This is why the US and Britain felt they must get that weapon first, leading to The Race to Build a Bomb.

“‘When you know you are being taken advantage of,’ Feklisov said, ‘you have every right to be clever.’”

The Soviets resent doing most of the heavy lifting against Hitler’s armies while the US tinkers with atomic bombs. They also know that America isn’t really a friend, even if it’s an ally, illustrating the complexity of Trust and Suspicion in Wartime. They therefore feel they deserve to have atomic bomb technology of their own. This attitude filters down to Soviet spies in the US, and, through them, to Americans who suffered during the Great Depression and resent capitalism. The “right to cheat” idea is one of the most important that the spies use to convince Americans to betray their country.

“A man who is a man goes on until he can go no further—and then goes twice as far.”

This local saying reminds the Norwegian resistance fighters, who are carrying heavy loads on skis across difficult terrain with no time to lose, that people of great character can overcome difficult odds. It speaks to their determination to defeat the Nazi invaders, no matter the cost.

“Almost everyone knew that this job would be part of history. This sense of excitement, of devotion, and of patriotism prevailed. Most of those with whom I talked came to Los Alamos.”

Oppenheimer recalls visiting scientists all over the country and recruiting many of them. Few want to leave their comfortable lives for the middle of the wilderness, but nearly all want to be part of an effort that, if it succeeds, will be a world-changing job.

“‘Of course, the Germans have already made a chain reaction,’ she said to herself. ‘We have, and they have been ahead until now.’ Then she thought, When do we get as scared as we ought to?”

Physics grad student Leona Woods recalls the world’s first synthetic chain reaction, which marked the experimental start of the atomic age. Staged as part of an effort to beat the Germans, who they believe are working on the same type of bomb project, the American scientists feel relief that their theories work correctly. The next step is to figure out how to convert a pile of uranium into a bomb powerful enough to wipe out a city. Busy as they are during wartime, the scientists don’t yet have the luxury of worrying about the future they’re creating—one in which humans will have the power to annihilate themselves.

“‘Some amazing rumors began to circulate through Santa Fe,’ remembered Leslie Groves. Some guessed that Los Alamos housed a secret military project. They were making submarines according to one rumor, death rays according to another. Others claimed Los Alamos was home for pregnant military personnel—or possibly a nudist colony.”

It’s hard to hide the construction activity at Los Alamos, which is near a small town filled with curious residents who are surprised by all the sudden commotion just down the road. As rumors fly, chances increase that they’ll stumble onto the real purpose, and from there it’s a short path to German intelligence. Oppenheimer tries to start a rumor that the project involves an electric rocket, but the ruse fizzles. It all points to the dangers of large, top-secret engineering projects—especially one whose purpose is to maintain a strategic edge over an enemy bent on learning the secret.

“‘Colonel Eifler,’ began Furman, ‘do you think you can kidnap this man and bring him out to us?’

‘When do I start?’

‘By God!’ shouted Furman, banging the table, ‘That’s the most refreshing thing I’ve heard in this whole damned war!’”

Major Robert Furman is delighted to find a soldier who’s eager to take on any assignment, no matter how dangerous. Colonel Eifler works for the OSS, the precursor to the CIA, which Sheinkin depicts as having a James Bond-like feel. Eifler’s job is to kidnap one of the most famous scientists in the world, Werner Heisenberg, who was vital to the development of quantum mechanics and may now be at the center of the German atomic bomb effort. The job, Sheinkin suggests, requires a real-life action hero to capture a super-genius.

“Everyone worked day and night, Monday through Saturday. Oppenheimer insisted people take Sundays off to rest and recharge. Scientists fished for trout in nearby streams, or climbed mountains and discussed physics while watching the sunrise. ‘This is how many discoveries were made,’ one scientist said.”

Oppenheimer’s leadership technique is ahead of its time; he encourages unusually high levels of creativity by allowing the workers’ minds time to recover. He also understands that great insights often come unexpectedly—especially when, after hard mental labor, a person relaxes and thinks about something else.

“What if Americans succeeded in building atomic bombs and they were the only ones to have them? Would the United States be more likely to use atomic bombs, knowing no one else could strike back? Wouldn’t the world be safer if a second major power also knew how to build atomic bombs? That way, neither country would use the bomb—knowing they’d have the bomb used on them. ‘It seemed to me,’ Hall said, ‘that an American monopoly was dangerous and should be prevented.’”

Ted Hall’s notion becomes an argument for betraying the US. It’s a more subtle point than the one about Russia, an ally, being unfairly left out of the atomic bomb loop. This claim appeals to bright people who foresee the dangers of nuclear weapons in the postwar world. Hall, still a teenager, decides to take unilateral actions that will change the course of history.

“‘At the age of twenty-nine, I had been entrusted with the successful delivery of the most frightful weapon ever devised,’ Tibbets recalled. ‘Although the weapon was beyond my comprehension, there was nothing about flying an airplane that I did not understand. If this bomb could be carried in an airplane, I could do the job.’”

Colonel Paul Tibbets understands the division of labor required during war. He often isn’t privy to information held by men only one rank above him. It’s not his job to design bombs or even to understand them, but it very much is his job to deliver them. Without his particular skill set, the atomic weapon is useless. He understands his vital place in US war plans, and he’s eager to do his part.

“‘Stimson told me that he wanted me to know about an immense project that was underway—a project looking to the development of a new explosive of almost unbelievable power,’ recalled Truman. ‘It was the first bit of information that had come to me about the atomic bomb.’”

Harry Truman becomes US president on the death of Roosevelt. Within hours, he learns about the atomic bomb project. Even as a senator and then a vice president, Truman wasn’t privy to the secret, and he’s stressed by the double shock of becoming one of the most powerful men on the planet during a grievous war and learning about the deadliest weapon ever devised. Truman, though, rises to the occasion.

“The war in Europe was over. Scientists at Los Alamos celebrated—and for a happy moment thought their job was done. Their work had been driven by the absolute necessity of winning the bomb race with Germany. ‘For me, Hitler was the personification of evil, and the primary justification for the atomic bomb work,’ remembered the physicist Emilio Segrè. ‘Now that the bomb could not be used against the Nazis, doubts arose. Those doubts, even if they do not appear in official reports, were discussed in many private discussions.’”

When Germany surrenders, Los Alamos scientists have time to ponder the wisdom of building a device capable of such massive destruction. They quickly realize that the war in the Pacific might still require their weapon, but these are the beginnings of an antinuclear movement that will burgeon after the war and challenge humankind’s conscience.

“‘The possibility of lightning striking the tower was very much on my mind.’ [Hornig] calmed himself with the knowledge that if lighting struck, the tower’s steel frame would most likely conduct the electricity harmlessly into the ground. Or, perhaps, the electrical burst would set off the bomb. ‘And in that case, I’d never know about it,’ he said. ‘So I read my book.’”

At the Trinity test site, young scientist Donald Hornig babysits the bomb the night before it will be detonated. Like most of the people there, Hornig adopts the ruthlessly pragmatic attitude that, in the event of catastrophic failure, he won’t feel a thing. The Manhattan Project isn’t merely an interesting intellectual exercise; it contains risks as scary as any on the battlefield. The scientists bet their lives on the cause.

“And then, without a sound, the sun was shining. Or so it looked.”

Scientist Otto Frisch describes the first moment of the first nuclear explosion. Vastly brighter than a sunny day, it stuns everyone, even though they reckoned on something intense. Thirty seconds later, a boom and pressure wave rock the bunker where Oppenheimer and his men monitor the event. The sheer size of their accomplishment is hard to process.

“‘We turned to one another and offered congratulations—for the first few minutes. Then, there was a chill, which was not the morning cold.’ It was the chill of knowing they had used something they loved—the study of physics—to build the deadliest weapon in human history. Oppenheimer was feeling the chill too. ‘It was extremely solemn,’ he recalled. ‘We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried. Most people were silent.’ Oppenheimer thought of a line from the ancient Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad-Gita, a dramatic moment in which the god Vishnu declares: ‘Now I am become death, the destroyer of worlds.’”

Oppenheimer’s quotation is the physicist’s most famous utterance. It captures the stunned silence that follows the elation of success. The scientists know that the world will never be the same; from now on, humanity will have the power to destroy itself utterly. It’s a kind of Faustian bargain to have an ability that may yet demand payment in the form of all humanity.

“If the atomic bomb could shock Japan into giving up, it had to be used. ‘It was a question of saving hundreds of thousands of American lives,’ [Truman] later explained. ‘I couldn’t worry about what history would say about my personal morality. I made the only decision I ever knew how to make. I did what I thought was right.’”

President Truman must make the final decision on using the atomic bomb against Japan. His choice remains controversial today. The A-bomb would do in seconds what regular US bombers would take all night to accomplish. Truman hopes the shock effect of such a super-weapon might encourage the Japanese to surrender and save their country from utter ruin.

“He passed people with horrible burns, their faces swollen, their blackened skin hanging in strips. Bodies on the ground, and bodies floating in the river. ‘I cannot describe the countless tragic things I saw,’ he said. An image that haunted many in Hiroshima was the horrific parade of victims on the streets. ‘They stagger exactly like sleepwalkers,’ said one survivor; ‘like walking ghosts’ said another.”

Shintaro Fukuhara, age 10 at the time, describes the scene just after the atomic bomb explodes above Hiroshima. Destruction from the bomb is massive; thousands are killed instantly, the wounded suffer painful burns, and many will later die. Most of the city is knocked down or burned, transformed instantly from a busy metropolis to a wasteland.

“Tibbets wrote out a coded report and handed it to the radio operator. ‘Clear-cut successful in all respects. Visual effects greater than Trinity.… Proceeding to regular base.’ As the plane headed home, the crew felt a mix of emotions, including relief that the job was done and hope that the war would now end. But something else entered the mix, a thought Paul Tibbets would never forget. ‘We were sobered by the knowledge that the world would never be the same,’ he said. ‘War, the scourge of the human race since time began, now held terrors beyond belief.’”

Like the scientists who built the bomb, the bomber crewmembers are so busy with their jobs that when the bomb works, they’re at first relieved and elated. However , they soon become troubled by what they’ve done. Perhaps they have halted the war with Japan, but they’ve also unleashed something almost too terrible to contemplate. It’s a weapon that can end not only a war but humanity itself.

“‘I was involved in this happy thing,’ [Feynman] remembered, ‘with the excitement running over Los Alamos—at the same time as the people were dying and struggling in Hiroshima.’ Almost everyone was feeling that same strange mix of pride and horror.”

The atomic bomb works—perhaps too well. Its creators, relieved that all their hard work ended in success, also feel aghast at the tremendous destruction the bomb caused.

“If atomic bombs are to be added as new weapons to the arsenals of a warring world, or to the arsenals of nations preparing for war, then the time will come when mankind will curse the names of Los Alamos and Hiroshima. The peoples of this world must unite or they will perish.”

As he leaves Los Alamos, Oppenheimer’s parting words sound a warning that still echoes today. He correctly foresees that an arms race will fill the world with tens of thousands of nuclear weapons, each a potential tragedy, and collectively capable of destroying humanity.

“[Oppenheimer] lifted his trembling hands in front of Truman. ‘Mr. President,’ he said, ‘I feel I have blood on my hands.’

Truman’s eyes flashed disgust. ‘Never mind,’ he mumbled, ‘it’ll all come out in the wash.’”

Oppenheimer wants the US and Russia to negotiate a treaty banning nuclear weapons, but Truman believes the Soviets will never get a bomb. He also feels contempt for Oppenheimer’s guilt: The president already has more than enough guilt of his own, so in his eyes Oppenheimer’s culpability pales in comparison. The scientist is right, though, about the dangers ahead. The president’s quick dismissal of Oppenheimer’s fears will come back to haunt him.

“[…] the United States tested the world’s first hydrogen bomb. It exploded with the incredible force of 10 megatons of TNT. That’s 10 million tons of TNT—more than 500 times more powerful than the bomb that flattened Hiroshima. Less than a year later, in Kazakhstan, the Soviets tested a hydrogen bomb—a success. From this point on, winning a nuclear war would be an impossibility. ‘We may be likened to two scorpions in a bottle,’ Oppenheimer wrote in a 1953 article, ‘each capable of killing the other, but only at the risk of his own life.’”

Hydrogen bombs are hundreds of times more powerful than the first atomic bombs. The thousands of bombs the US and Soviet Union would develop can destroy civilization. Oppenheimer’s worst fears came true, and the world today stands constantly on the edge of annihilation.