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I’m aware this is a tangent, but I couldn’t find any mention of nuclear weapons in the wikipedia page for Operation Downfall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Op

I’m aware this is a tangent, but I couldn’t find any mention of nuclear weapons in the wikipedia page for Operation Downfall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall Now, Operation Downfall was supposed to be many, many times larger than the Normandy landing, so the wiki page cannot possibly be complete. If you have some details about the planned use of nukes, could you provide a link please? I’m especially interested in whether the planners envisioned using NBC equipment, in which case an invasion after 48 hours does not sound quite absurd.

jdsully 7y ago
The scientists knew and understood the risks of radiation. A few had already died from accidents during the making of the bomb. The government considered it a calculated risk - as they did with the soldiers sent to the bombed cities after the war. In war you have to send people into harms way, its not much different from making men land on a beach with machine guns trained on them. One thing is pretty clear though, they didn't want to publicize the radiation effects on humans. Those they sent to Hiroshima were there to study the victims not to help and many didn't know the health effects they would soon personally suffer.
opo 7y ago
>...I’m aware this is a tangent, but I couldn’t find any mention of nuclear weapons in the wikipedia page for Operation Downfall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall There is a section of that wikipedia page that talks about the planned use of atomic bombs during the invasion: >Nuclear weapons >On Marshall's orders, Major General John E. Hull looked into the tactical use of nuclear weapons for the invasion of the Japanese home islands, even after the dropping of two strategic atomic bombs on Japan (Marshall did not think that the Japanese would capitulate immediately). Colonel Lyle E. Seeman reported that at least seven Fat Man-type plutonium implosion bombs would be available by X-Day, which could be dropped on defending forces. Seeman advised that American troops not enter an area hit by a bomb for "at least 48 hours"; the risk of nuclear fallout was not well understood, and such a short amount of time after detonation would have resulted in substantial radiation exposure for the American troops.[81] >Ken Nichols, the District Engineer of the Manhattan Engineer District, wrote that at the beginning of August 1945, "[p]lanning for the invasion of the main Japanese home islands had reached its final stages, and if the landings actually took place, we might supply about fifteen atomic bombs to support the troops."[82] An air burst 1,800–2,000 ft (550–610 m) above the ground had been chosen for the (Hiroshima) bomb to achieve maximum blast effects, and to minimize residual radiation on the ground as it was hoped that American troops would soon occupy the city.[83]

jdsully 7y ago

The scientists knew and understood the risks of radiation. A few had already died from accidents during the making of the bomb. The government considered it a calculated risk - as they did with the soldiers sent to the bombed cities after the war. In war you have to send people into harms way, its not much different from making men land on a beach with machine guns trained on them. One thing is pretty clear though, they didn't want to publicize the radiation effects on humans. Those they sent to Hiroshima were there to study the victims not to help and many didn't know the health effects they would soon personally suffer.

opo 7y ago

>...I’m aware this is a tangent, but I couldn’t find any mention of nuclear weapons in the wikipedia page for Operation Downfall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall There is a section of that wikipedia page that talks about the planned use of atomic bombs during the invasion: >Nuclear weapons >On Marshall's orders, Major General John E. Hull looked into the tactical use of nuclear weapons for the invasion of the Japanese home islands, even after the dropping of two strategic atomic bombs on Japan (Marshall did not think that the Japanese would capitulate immediately). Colonel Lyle E. Seeman reported that at least seven Fat Man-type plutonium implosion bombs would be available by X-Day, which could be dropped on defending forces. Seeman advised that American troops not enter an area hit by a bomb for "at least 48 hours"; the risk of nuclear fallout was not well understood, and such a short amount of time after detonation would have resulted in substantial radiation exposure for the American troops.[81] >Ken Nichols, the District Engineer of the Manhattan Engineer District, wrote that at the beginning of August 1945, "[p]lanning for the invasion of the main Japanese home islands had reached its final stages, and if the landings actually took place, we might supply about fifteen atomic bombs to support the troops."[82] An air burst 1,800–2,000 ft (550–610 m) above the ground had been chosen for the (Hiroshima) bomb to achieve maximum blast effects, and to minimize residual radiation on the ground as it was hoped that American troops would soon occupy the city.[83]