Cities Chosen on Purpose

The heat at ground zero was extreme. People within half a mile were vaporized, and some left nothing but shadows burned into concrete.

The choice of cities was deliberate. Hiroshima and Nagasaki had been largely spared conventional bombing, which meant the new weapon's effects could be seen on an intact target. Kyoto was on the original list and was removed only because Secretary of War Stimson personally intervened, insisting the ancient capital be spared as a city of immense cultural and religious importance rather than a true military target. He even warned that destroying it could leave a bitterness that would push postwar Japan toward the Soviets. (A popular legend says he acted because he had honeymooned there, but historians have found no evidence for it.) Each remaining target was picked for its impact: enough destruction to force a political decision in Tokyo.