Over two-thirds of Hiroshima's buildings were demolished. The blast wave shattered windows for a distance of ten miles and was felt as far away as 37 miles. In less than one second, the fireball had expanded to 900 feet. The bomb had an explosive yield of about 12.5 kilotons of TNT. The bomb exploded 1,900 feet above the center of the city, some 70 yards southeast of the Industrial Promotion Hall (now known as the Atomic Bomb Dome). In an instant 80,000 to 140,000 people were killed and 100,000 more were seriously injured. The uranium 235 gun-type bomb, named Little Boy, exploded at 8:16 a.m. Hiroshima was chosen as the primary target since it had remained largely untouched by bombing raids and the bomb’s effects could be clearly measured.
This mission was piloted by Colonel Paul Tibbets. On August 6, 1945, an American B-29 bomber named the Enola Gay left the island of Tinian for Hiroshima, Japan.
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