In the final two episodes of this series, the war enters its most devastating and transformative phase. As American forces endure the horrors of Okinawa and Japan refuses to surrender, President Harry Truman faces an almost unimaginable decision: whether to unleash the most terrible weapon ever created. The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki bring the conflict to a shocking end, but victory comes at a cost that will haunt humanity forever. With the Axis defeated, the world attempts to rebuild from unprecedented destruction. Yet the alliance between the United States and the Soviet Union rapidly collapses into suspicion and confrontation. From the division of Germany and the Berlin Blockade to the creation of NATO and the Soviet Union’s first atomic test, former allies become nuclear adversaries. The Second World War is over—but a new and even more dangerous struggle has begun, placing the entire world beneath the shadow of annihilation.
During the Cold War, American and Soviet scientists embarked on a perilous race to create the most powerful bomb in human history. This gripping documentary unveils how both nations pushed the boundaries of science and morality, culminating in the Soviet Union’s creation of the “Tsar Bomba”—the largest and most devastating weapon ever detonated, with a blast over 3,000 times more powerful than Hiroshima. Through unexpected twists, miscalculations, and high-stakes experiments, The World’s Biggest Bomb delves into the untold stories of ambition, fear, and rivalry that shaped a critical moment in history. Witness the harrowing journey of the scientists who risked everything to harness destruction on an unimaginable scale, forever altering the course of humanity.
The final hours of WW2 changed the course of history. As the Americans inch closer to Japan the Japanese fight with greater intensity. The question now is how to end the conflict. Starve them into capitulation? Many in US command believe the Japanese will never surrender. The alternative is to stage a massive invasion that would dwarf D-Day? The massacre of millions would be inevitable. But then a third and far darker option becomes available: the atom bomb.
August 6th 1945 marked the start of a terrifying new episode in human history. This documentary marks the 70th anniversary of the day when the world's first atomic bomb was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima by a Boeing B-29 USAF Superfortress bomber, nicknamed Enola Gay after the pilot's mother". Up to 80,000 people - 30 per cent of the population - were killed by the blast and resulting firestorm and over 70,000 were injured. This documentary gives a minute-by-minute account of what happened on that fateful day, through the testimony of people who were there and rarely-seen archive footage from the time. Made on location in Hiroshima and the USA, it features unique interviews with eyewitnesses who have seldom, if ever, spoken about the experience. Several of them are no longer alive, they include the last surviving member of the crew of the Enola Gay - navigator Dutch Van Kirk who died in July 2014.
It was the defining moment of the 20th Century - the scientific, technological, military, and political gamble of the world's first atomic attack. This drama-documentary attempts to do what no other film has done before - to show what it is like to live through a nuclear explosion, millisecond by millisecond. Set in the three weeks from the first test explosion in New Mexico to the eventual dropping of the bomb, the action takes viewers into the room where the crucial political decisions are made; on board the Enola Gay on her fateful voyage; inside the bomb as it explodes; and on the streets of Hiroshima when disaster strikes. Parallel storylines interweave, unfolding the action from both US and Japanese perspectives, and revealing the tensions and conflicts in the actions and minds of people who were making history. Special effects recreate the reality of the mission - even going inside the workings of the bomb - and archive film replays the horrific aftermath.
It was the defining moment of the 20th Century - the scientific, technological, military, and political gamble of the world's first atomic attack. This drama-documentary attempts to do what no other film has done before - to show what it is like to live through a nuclear explosion, millisecond by millisecond. Set in the three weeks from the first test explosion in New Mexico to the eventual dropping of the bomb, the action takes viewers into the room where the crucial political decisions are made; on board the Enola Gay on her fateful voyage; inside the bomb as it explodes; and on the streets of Hiroshima when disaster strikes. Parallel storylines interweave, unfolding the action from both US and Japanese perspectives, and revealing the tensions and conflicts in the actions and minds of people who were making history. Special effects recreate the reality of the mission - even going inside the workings of the bomb - and archive film replays the horrific aftermath.
With the Axis defeated, the world attempts to rebuild from unprecedented destruction. Yet the alliance between the United States and the Soviet Union rapidly collapses into suspicion and confrontation. From the division of Germany and the Berlin Blockade to the creation of NATO and the Soviet Union’s first atomic test, former allies become nuclear adversaries. The Second World War is over—but a new and even more dangerous struggle has begun, placing the entire world beneath the shadow of annihilation.