The Atomic Bomb Manhattan Project - 1112 Words

Topic: The Atomic Bomb: Manhattan Project What is it: The Manhattan Project was a research and development project that produced the first nuclear weapons during World War II. the manhattan project was the invention of the first two nuclear bombs, Fat man and little boy.These two bombs were dropped on japanese islands to end World War II. Math: The formula E=MC2 is responsible for the immense power of the Atomic Bomb. E = mc2, equation in German-born physicist Albert Einstein’s theory of special relativity that showed that the increased relativistic mass (m) of a body comes from the energy of motion of the body—that is, its kinetic energy (E)—divided by the speed of light squared (c2). This equation expresses the fact that mass and†¦show more content†¦Two neutrons do not continue the reaction because they are lost or absorbed by a uranium-238 atom. However, one neutron does collide with an atom of uranium-235, which then fissions and releases two neutrons and some binding energy. Both of those neutrons collide with uranium-235 atoms, each of which fission and release between one and three neutrons, and so on. This causes a nuclear chain reaction. For more on this topic, see Nuclear Fission. Criticality In order to detonate an atomic weapon, you need a critical mass of fissionable material. This means you need enough U-235 or Pu-239 to ensure that neutrons released by fission will strike another nucleus, thus producing a chain reaction. The more fissionable material you have, the greater the odds that such an event will occur. Critical mass is defined as the amount of material at which a neutron produced by a fission process will, on average, create another fission event. The Difference Between the Bombs Little Boy and Fat Man utilized different elements and completely separate methods of construction in order to function as nuclear weapons. Little Boy detonated due to a fission chain reaction involving the isotope U-235 of uranium, while Fat Man used plutonium’s Pu-239 form. the FAT MAN bomb powered by plutonium, Fat Man could not use the same gun-type design that allowed Little Boy to explode effectively - the form of plutonium collected from the nuclear reactors at Hanford, WA for the