... wonderful, early science-fiction movie predicting the downfall of civilization from endless scientific-industrial war. A classic and great influence. Before 'Dr. Stranglove" or 'The Terminator'... there was 'Things To Come!'
... pre-atomic apocalypse!
... even before the advent of atomic-power; humanity (especially the writers of cheap pulp-fiction) feared scientific super-weapons that would visit world-wide annihilation. Fanned by the horrific experience of World War One, these tales usually involved the use of poison gas or man-made plagues. Driven by ever more powerful science and industrial growth the specter of grinding 'total-war', lasting decades, fueled the nightmares of the 1920's and 30's. H.G. Wells story "Things To Come", turned into a 1936 movie, is a hallmark of these fears.
"... how it works!"
... yes kids... you can put your toys, Dad's watch or Mom's girdle, inside an 'atomic pile' and make them radioactive! You can also put in other atomic elements and convert them into new elements- just like magic!
( not for children under the age of eight)
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... free wax!
... after a dusty journey, the Museum at Los Alamos, takes it's new 'Fat-Man' atomic bomb display replica through the local truck wash. I wonder how folks on the Interstate felt as they pulled up alongside that trailer!
1968 ... prowling the skies!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_Grumman_EA-6B_Prowler
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all images- Right click- open in New Window= super colossal size!
1965 ... cold warrior Lyndon!
... fourth in the line of Cold War Presidents, starting with Truman and ending with Reagan, Lyndon Johnson's dreams of an American 'Great Society' were ruined by the budgets and domestic strife of the Vietnam War.
... a war that could count him as a casualty since, even though he relished the Presidency, he refused to run for a second term and died four years after he left office at the age of sixty-four.
1958 ... picnic with air-cover!
... this is remarkably close to a snapshot of my family in 1957. Complete with two year-old me giving my father a pain in the neck and dreaming of one day running a Cold War blog!
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all images- Right click- open in New Window= super colossal size!
1952 ... the moment!
"EG&G MIT coll -Atomic Bomb Explosion atop a Steel Tower photograph of shed observed at moment of atomic bomb explosion; taken at Eniwetok, ca. 1952"
... the above is the official MIT descriptive caption for the above photo. The photo is also much more than that. To start with; it is testament to amazing technical accomplishments of 'Doc' Edgerton and Edgerton, Germeshausen, and Grier, Inc. They were able to build 'cameras', that used a complex series optical shutters and rotating mirrors. which captured pictures in fractions of a millionth of a second. These cameras, commonly known as Rapatronic, opened a view into the all important physics of atomic fission and fusion. ( It gives me considerable pause to consider that, in spite of all the complex measuring devices utilized, seeing what actually happened remained such an important clue in the science of atomic weapons.) Most Rapatronic photos, including previous posts on this blog, show the shape and dynamics of the nuclear 'fireball' during it's first microseconds of expansion.
... so- what are we seeing? This the 'cab' or shack that houses the 'bomb' that sits on top of a tall tower. The cab protects the bomb or 'device' and various electronic switches and triggers from the elements during the days or weeks up until the 'test' or detonation. The tower structure it sits on, often 300 feet tall or higher, allows for better observation of events and helps to simulate 'airburst' [ since nuclear weapons are most effective when detonated at some height from the ground.
... but what are we really seeing?! Well- I'm not sure. Some notes have mentioned that the cab appears to be fluorescing with X-Ray energy making it transparent. To the left there appears to be two puffs(?). Is this the start of vaporization of the material of the cab?
Of course the most prominent feature is in the middle-upper right which looks like a giant friggin' eye! Is that the 'device' caught in some weird moment of percolating itself into and out of existence before it becomes an ... atomic explosion?
... no doubt it is one of the weirdest things I have ever seen. I do not remember where or when on the Internet I originally collected this image. But I was surprised to find it pop-up last week on a simple search with the words 'first moment of nuclear explosion'.
as a side note: I will repeat my supposition that there are a lot of Rapatronic images that have not and may never see the light of day. There seems to be a complete lack of any such images from thermo-nuclear testing. This probably is owing to the fact that they are not just weird snapshots- but scientific information that- sadly- needs to be kept secret.
... so- what are we seeing? This the 'cab' or shack that houses the 'bomb' that sits on top of a tall tower. The cab protects the bomb or 'device' and various electronic switches and triggers from the elements during the days or weeks up until the 'test' or detonation. The tower structure it sits on, often 300 feet tall or higher, allows for better observation of events and helps to simulate 'airburst' [ since nuclear weapons are most effective when detonated at some height from the ground.
... but what are we really seeing?! Well- I'm not sure. Some notes have mentioned that the cab appears to be fluorescing with X-Ray energy making it transparent. To the left there appears to be two puffs(?). Is this the start of vaporization of the material of the cab?
Of course the most prominent feature is in the middle-upper right which looks like a giant friggin' eye! Is that the 'device' caught in some weird moment of percolating itself into and out of existence before it becomes an ... atomic explosion?
... no doubt it is one of the weirdest things I have ever seen. I do not remember where or when on the Internet I originally collected this image. But I was surprised to find it pop-up last week on a simple search with the words 'first moment of nuclear explosion'.
as a side note: I will repeat my supposition that there are a lot of Rapatronic images that have not and may never see the light of day. There seems to be a complete lack of any such images from thermo-nuclear testing. This probably is owing to the fact that they are not just weird snapshots- but scientific information that- sadly- needs to be kept secret.
1945 ... using "the bomb" !
... president Harry S. Truman.
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... Nov.1, 1962
... editorial cartoon by Herbert Block; just days after the end of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
1960 ... B-58 "Hustler"
1958 ... "Facts About Fallout Protection"
... I think that the green color scheme gives it a nice airy feel!
1949 ... "First Lightning" (Первая молния)
... oooo- until recently, all of this was very, very secret stuff!! Historical photos of the early Soviet atomic bomb project. The color photo at the top is from 1999 and shows some of the great-brave-patriotic comrades who thought up and put together Russia's atomic bombs. The old photos are supposed to be the test stand for the first detonation and a 'weaponized' version that could be air-dropped.
I'm not sure what to make of the older photos!? The idea of billions of rubles being poured into an ultimate scientific achievement that winds up sitting on a crude wooden stand in the middle of the woods...? Stern worker-peasant standing next to oil-stained 'bombski' ...? Is this a joke? An attempt at dis-information? Or, is reality stranger than fiction and the CIA guys were rolling in the aisles?
The basics are correct. Hmmm... Well, many of the photos of America's first test in 1945 in New Mexico look like a bunch of scrawny college kids lost on a dude-ranch.
The 1999 photo? Heck- it's a bunch of kindly old Grand-pa's!
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... if I don't believe- it isn't true!
... a well known fact about human psychology is the phenomenon of 'denial'. When confronted with possibilities of Nuclear war a surprising number of people simply refused to consider Civil Defense as possible. This is not surprising. The term 'the unthinkable' was often used in reference to World War III. Rationalization of this denial came in various forms. Finger in the ears ignorance. Depression masked as cavalier fatalism. Or even substitution of fear of a government conspiracy to cover up the grim truth or make thermonuclear battle 'winnable'.
The historical fact is, that no-matter how quaint or un-hip Cold War efforts for Civil Defense may seem, it was all out of a sincere concern to save lives and suffering. Dull, boring government civil servants looked at the scientific information available and concluded "gee- there were some basic things that could be done to save the lives of millions of people - if the unthinkable actually did happen."
Ironically; a truly robust and efficient Civil Defense effort was seen by Cold War think-tankers as 'provocative'. Large levels of Soviet spending on Civil Defense worried the Pentagon that the Russian leadership was more practical and therefore more capable of fighting WW3.
...OK- if you scroll down to the cartoon of the guy digging holes in the backyard while his wife shivers in her underwear- you can take some of this stern lecture with a grain of salt!
1962 ... Cuban Missile Crisis!
... another view of President Kennedy addressing the nation about the Soviet missiles in Cuba.
... dispose of contaminated clothing!
... sorry about the poor quality; but I just love the built in absurdity of this illustration. If you clothing has been contaminated it most assuredly happened outside- so don't stand around outside digging up more settled fallout to bury it!
Besides- any moment Atomic Zombies are going to come by and nab your hot wife!
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all images- Right click- open in New Window= super colossal size!
1965 ... off to drop the nukes!
"... don't wait up Honey!"
So long mom, I'm off to drop the bomb,
So don't wait up for me,
But while you swelter down there in your shelter
You can see me. . .On your TV.
So don't wait up for me,
But while you swelter down there in your shelter
You can see me. . .On your TV.
While we're attacking frontally, watch Brinkley and Huntley
Describing contrapuntally the cities we have lost.
No need for you to miss a minute of the agonizing holocaust.
Describing contrapuntally the cities we have lost.
No need for you to miss a minute of the agonizing holocaust.
Little Johnnie Jones was a US pilot, no shrinking violet was he.
He was mighty proud when world war three was declared
He wasn't scared, no siree.
And this is what he said on his way to Armageddon:
He was mighty proud when world war three was declared
He wasn't scared, no siree.
And this is what he said on his way to Armageddon:
So long, mom, I'm off to drop the bomb, so don't wait up for me,
But though I may roam, I'll come back to my home,
Although it may be a pile of debris.
But though I may roam, I'll come back to my home,
Although it may be a pile of debris.
Remember Mommy, I'm off to get a Commie,
So send me a salami, and try to smile somehow.
I'll look for you when the war is over,
An hour and a half from now.
So send me a salami, and try to smile somehow.
I'll look for you when the war is over,
An hour and a half from now.
Tom Lehrer
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