Roosevelt Approves Manhattan Project on December 28, 1942, Leading to Atomic Bombs in WWII
On December 28, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt approved the Manhattan Project, a top-secret initiative aimed at developing atomic bombs, which would later be used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This decision followed earlier commitments to create atomic weapons amid fears of Nazi Germany's potential bomb development.
The project began with the 'Einstein-Szilard letter' in 1939, advocating for a U.S. nuclear program. After the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1941, the U.S. escalated its efforts. The U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers established the Manhattan Engineer District in June 1942, with Roosevelt allocating $500 million for the project that employed thousands, many unaware of its true purpose. The project's weapons development was led by physicist J.
Robert Oppenheimer. In April 1945, Roosevelt died, and Vice President Harry Truman was briefed on the project. It culminated in the Trinity test in July 1945, marking the first nuclear weapon detonation, followed by the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
