Compelling facts about Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Symbol of Peace - The Nagasaki Peace Park opened in 1955 in the location where the atomic bomb fell. Located within the park is a 30 ton statue created by Seibo Kitamura. The statue has its right hand pointing at the sky, symbolizing the danger of nuclear weapons, and its left hand extended horizontally to symbolize peace.

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Moment of silence - On August 6th every year, Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park organizes a ceremony in memory of the victims. The Japanese Prime Minister and the Mayor of Hiroshima give a speech at 8:16 am (the time of the explosion), followed by a minute of silence.

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Radiation - Scientific studies indicate that the survivors received an average dose of 210 millisieverts of radiation. In comparison, an MRI in a hospital emits just 2 millisieverts.

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Differences - Contrary to what you may believe, there are no differences that exist between children that are born of people affected by the explosions and those of people who were not.

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Expansion - In 2005, the city of Nagasaki grew significantly, as other towns such as Koyaji, Nomozaki, Sanwa, Sotome, Lojima and Takashima became part of the city.

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Life expectancy - A study conducted by the molecular biologist named Bertrand Jordan concluded that the life expectancy of those affected by the explosions in Nagasaki and Hiroshima was only reduced by mere months in comparison to those that weren't affected.

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End to nuclear weapons - Hiroshima continues to be one of the cities that most vehemently condemns the use of nuclear weapons. The mayor is also the president of Mayors for Peace, a world organization that tries to convince various cities to abolish and condemn the use of nuclear weapons.

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Growth - It was only by the end of 1958 that Hiroshima's population reached 410,000 citizens, finally surpassing the number it had before the attack. Today, the city is home to more than 1.2 million people.

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Saved city - Kyoto was allegedly saved from the atomic bomb by Henry L. Stimson, the US Secretary of War. Stimson is said to have dissuaded Truman from bombing the old capital, both due to its cultural significance, as well as to the fact that it had been his honeymoon destination.

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Investigation - After the bombings, it became very common in Japan for people to hire private detectives in order to discover whether their loved ones survived the attack.

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Shadows - The force of the explosion was so strong that the shadows of the victims were marked on the pavement. These shadows were caused by the enormous heat of the explosion, which modified the hue of the buildings. Some of these markings can still be seen at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum.

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Prejudice - There is a constant prejudice that follows the survivors of the bombings and their families in Japan. There are still many that believe that the mutations from radiation are hereditary, and could be contagious. These people often have difficulty finding jobs.

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Radars - Japanese radars at the time did detect some American planes in Japanese airspace and a warning was sounded. However a weather plane later determined that there were no bombers in sight. Once American planes reached Hiroshima a warning to take shelter was issued again, though this time it was largely ignored.

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Secret - Only three of the 12 people that were aboard the Enola Gay (the plane that dropped the first bomb) knew the real goal of the Hiroshima mission.

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Delay - It took Tokyo three hours to learn that Hiroshima had been bombed.

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Temperature - The heat emitted by the bombs was similar to that of the temperature of the sun.

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Tragic destination - Japan continues to be the only country that has suffered a nuclear attack.

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Bodies -

Not all of the victims' bodies were identified, because many were completely turned to ash.

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Public Domain

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Double survivors -

After Hiroshima was bombed, some of the survivors traveled to Nagasaki, where they were bombed again. About 165 people are known to have survived both attacks.

Getty Images

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City flower - The oleander is considered the city flower of Hiroshima, as it was the first plant to grow after the explosion.

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Frame of reference - On the day of the attack, August 9th, 1945, Nagasaki had approximately 260,000 inhabitants. Today, more than half a million people live there.

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Koreans - It is approximated that 10% of the victims in Hiroshima and Nagasaki were Koreans, many of them forced to work in Japanese factories and construct weapons for the Japanese army.

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Survivors - Survivors of the bombings are some of the most studied groups of people. The Radiation Effects Research Foundation, founded by the US and Japan, studied more than 94,000 survivors.

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Their own word - The Japanese word used for the survivors of the bombing is "Hibakusha." It literally means "people affected by the explosion."

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