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American scientists successfully test the first atomic bomb in New Mexico.
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The American bomber Enola Gay drops an atomic bomb nicknamed "Little Boy" on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The instant devastation unleashed on Hiroshima shocks the world and ushers in the nuclear age.
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The American plane Bockscar drops an atomic bomb nicknamed "Fat Man" on the Japanese city of Nagasaki.
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At the end of World War II, Korea—occupied during the war by Japanese forces—is divided at the 38th Parallel, and two new states are established. North Korea is run by Communist Kim Il-Sung, while South Korea is run by anticommunist autocrat Syngman Rhee.
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In a speech later remembered as the "Truman Doctrine," President Harry S. Truman pledges American assistance to any nation in the world threatened by Communism, officially establishing the worldwide containment of Communism as a vital American national security interest.
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n a speech made at Harvard University, Secretary of State George Marshall proposes the Marshall Plan, a $13 billion foreign aid package designed to help Europe recover from the devastation of World War II.
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After the United States, Britain, and France introduce the Deutsche Mark to serve as a single currency for their three zones of occupation in western Germany, the Soviets impose the Berlin blockade, cutting off rail and road access to the capital city, which is located in the middle of the Soviet zone of eastern Germany.
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Ten Western European nations join the United States and Canada to form the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), an anti-Soviet military alliance that extends the deterrent threat of America's nuclear weapons to cover Western Europe.
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The Soviet Union forms the Warsaw Pact, a Communist military alliance intended to counter the threat posed by the West's North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
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The Soviet Union detonates its first atomic bomb, causing shock and fear in the United States.
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The Korean War begins as North Korean troops attack across the 38th parallel in an effort to "liberate" South Korea.
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The United States explodes its first hydrogen bomb—a weapon hundreds of times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Japan in 1945—at Enewetak in the South Pacific.
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In East Berlin, a general strike devolves into rioting as demonstrators begin to demand free elections from the Communist government. These demonstrations represent the first signs of violent discontent in the Soviet bloc. Moscow responds by sending in Red Army troops to crush the demonstrators.
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The Soviets explode their first hydrogen bomb, a mere nine months after the United States accomplished the same feat. The Soviets' determination to keep up with American technological developments signals their commitment to the arms race.
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Communist Chinese forces begin shelling Quemoy, a small island held by the Nationalist government of Taiwan. Since Quemoy lies in the strait between the mainland and Taiwan, Nationalist officials fear the shelling represents a Communist threat to invade Taiwan proper. The United States considers using nuclear weapons to protect its ally in accordance with the policy of massive retaliation, but President Dwight Eisenhower decides against such a drastic step. The Quemoy crisis highlights the funda
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Americans fly the first U2 spy plane over Moscow. The U2 is designed to fly at such a high altitude that it remains out of range of Soviet weapons and undetectable to Soviet radar.
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The Hungarian Revolution begins when student protesters demand changes to the Communist government's national policies. The government falls and protesters organize to resist an invasion by Soviet troops.
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The Soviets launch Sputnik, the first man-made object to orbit the earth. The Soviets' technological success in building the world's first satellite strikes fear in the hearts of Americans and launches the space race.
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The United States launches its first satellite, Explorer.
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The United States and Canada join together to form the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) to monitor the skies for Soviet nuclear attack.
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The United States creates NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, to lead the space race with the Soviet Union.
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American pilot Gary Powers's U2 spy plane is shot down over the Soviet Union. President Eisenhower denies responsibility for the international incident and refuses to apologize, precipitating the collapse of a planned Paris summit between the United States and Soviet Union.
