-
Hiroshima Atomic Bomb
The U.S. dropped an untested bomb nicknamed "Little Boy" on Hiroshima in August 1945, killing 70,000 people instantly, and the death toll rose to some 140,000 by December. The radius of destruction was reportedly 1.6km. People who were outside were burned to death, while people who were inside died by the indescribable pressure and heat. The final death toll was closer to 200,000. This event was important to the cold war because it started the era of weapons of mass destruction. -
Nagasaki Atomic Bomb
The U.S. dropped a second atomic bomb, nicknamed "Fat Man", on Nagasaki because Japan did not surrender after the bombing of Hiroshima. Fat Man was planned to be dropped on August 11th but was moved up to August 9th because of bad weather. The explosion unleashed the equivalent force of 22,000 tons of TNT. The death toll was somewhere between 60,000 and 80,000. This event was important to the cold war because it caused Japan to finally surrender. Photo from Yahoo News. -
Test Baker
The U.S. conducted the first underwater nuclear explosion at the Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean. The objective was to assess the effects of a nuclear explosion on a fleet of ships and animals. Almost all of the pigs and rats on the ships died and of the 57 target vessels, eight either sunk or capsized as a direct result of the explosion. This event was important to the cold war because it proved that atomic bombs still work underwater. Photo from University Libraries. -
Marshall Plan
Also known as the European Recovery Program, the Marchall Plan was a U.S. program providing aid to Western Europe after WWII. It provided more than $15 billion to help finance rebuilding efforts and was crafted as a four-year plan to reconstruct cities, industries, and infrastructure heavily damaged during the war. This plan was important to the cold war because Western Europe could finally begin rebuilding. -
Berlin Airlift
When the Deutschmark was announced, the Soviets responded by cutting off links between West Germany and West Berlin. Stalin cut off every other route he could. Air was still available, which started the Berlin Airlift. The U.S. and British gave the people of West Berlin supplies by plane. Stalin looked like a bad leader, so he lifted the blockade. This was very important to the cold war because it is things like this that decide who wins and who loses. Photo from RadioFreEuropeRadioLiberty. -
Soviet Atomic Bomb
The USSR detonated its first atomic bomb, "First Lightning", at Semipalatinsk in Kazakhstan. Soviet scientists constructed buildings, bridges, and other civilian structures in the vicinity of the bomb. They also placed animals nearby. The explosion destroyed all structures and incinerated the animals. This was important to the cold war because a U.S. spy plane picked up evidence of radioactivity, which caused panic as the U.S. was no longer the only one with atomic bombs. Photo from Britannica. -
Korean War
After WWII the U.S. divided Korea to the south and Russia/China to the north. They were divided at the 38th parallel to ensure a buffer zone between the two. On June 25th, 1950, the north invaded the south. With the help of the U.S. the south pushed back up to the Chinese border. The rest of the war was fought along the 38th parallel where an armistice was signed in 1953. This war is important because the U.S. had to show that they weren't going to let the Soviets advance. Photo from Britannica. -
Hydrogen Bomb
The first successful detonation of an American-made hydrogen device occurred in the Pacific region on the Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands. This test involved the deployment of Mike, and the blast left behind a crater more than a mile wide and creating a virulent mushroom cloud that was approximately 100 miles wide and 25 miles high. This was important to the cold war because the American and Soviet governments became fixated on the threat of thermonuclear conflict. Photo from History. -
Sputnik Crisis
The Sputnik crisis was the American reaction to the success of the Sputnik program. The Soviet Union had launched Sputnik 1, the first artificial earth satellite. Although Sputnik was harmless, the same rocket that launched Sputnik could send a nuclear warhead anywhere in the world. This meant that the oceans no longer protected the U.S. from attacks. The Sputnik crisis was important during the cold war because it started a series of leaps in space technology. Photo from Pinterest. -
U-2 Incident
The Soviets shot down a U.S. plane. The U.S. denied that the pilot was to collect data. Khrushchev declared that the Soviets wouldn't attend a conference unless the U.S. stopped flying over Soviet territory, apologized, and punished those deserved. Eisenhower agreed to part. The pilot was sentenced 10 years and later exchanged for Rudolf Abel. This event is important to the cold war because it was one of the few times the Soviets did direct physical damage to an American. Photo from Britannica.
