Some interesting reminders here:
from https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
James Welch, lives in Orange County, CA (2008-present)
Answered February 7
Originally Answered: How close was Germany and Japan to develope their
own nuclear weapons?
Not close at all.
Neither Japan nor Germany had the following:
A team of scientists—nuclear physicists, chemists, mathematicians, explosive experts, and others—who, just from knowing about uranium fission, could work out how to make a nuclear bomb. Hell, they didn’t
even get a working reactor!
The funds to make this possible. Remember, it took $2,000,000,000 1945 American dollars to build the first 4 nukes (Trinity, Little Boy, Fat
Man, and “the demon core”).
The resources to make this happen. The Manhattan project, for example,
used HUGE amounts of electricity to run the isotope separation plants.
In the 1950s these plants used **8%** of American electricity. Neither
the Japanese nor the Germans could build all the extra power plants;
they just did not have the manpower to build them, nor did they have the copper to install the generators and then transmit the power to the
plants needed.
The Alsos Mission investigated this in 1945 and found the Germans had
not only not built nukes, they didn’t even have a blueprint of how to
get there! And Japan was worse off.
Finally, in both Germany and Japan the scientific resources were spread amongst various ministries. No coordination nor cooperation. ------------------
a response
Emmett Smith
·
February 7
During the Korean War, U.S. troops who were pursuing the fleeing North Korean army found a huge, artificial lake in a relatively remote part of North Korea. Two hydroelectric dams impounded the lake, but they were
not connected to the North’s power grid! This complex remained a mystery until long after the war ended. Finally, a Japanese scientist admitted
that the dams were built by his country in World War Two as power
sources for an atomic bomb project. The Japanese also created a four
engine bomber (based on a Kawanishi seaplane design!) to carry their
bomb and drop it on U.S. forces on Okinawa or Russian forces (if they entered the war). The project was intended to make its first atomic bomb some time in 1946.
James Welch
·
February 7
Emmett, please provide me a link or a reference.
I have read Boris Pash's book on the Alsos mission, which he commanded,
and I have also read The Making of the Atomic Bomb and Dark Sun, both by Richard Rhodes. All three state the Germans and the Japanese were
nowhere NEAR making a nuke.
And by the way, the power supply would have to go somewhere. Separating
U235 is a tedious process that requires large amounts of power to run
the Calutrons. During the Manhattan Project, they went to the Treasury Department to get 15,000 tons of SILVER to wind the magnets, as there
was not enough copper available. Did your source say what the Japanese
used to separate the isotopes?
Emmett SmithNo, they went no farther than to state that Japan was trying
to assemble a nuclear complex in Korea. The area was beyond the
knowledge -or the
No, they went no farther than to state that Japan was trying to assemble
a nuclear complex in Korea. The area was beyond the knowledge -or the bombing range-of the allies. Information about their method for making a bomb is sadly lacking. Maybe they were not entirely certain themselves!
Or maybe they were hoping for some assistance by German scientists. In
any case, the latter was not forthcoming and Japan ran out of time.
------------------------------
Frank Duncan, Radiation expert, Extensive study of the war against Japan. Answered February 7
Originally Answered: How close was Germany and Japan to develope their
own nuclear weapons?
Germany had run all of the top scientists out because they were Jewish,
and “Jewish science” was bad science. They had very few top level scientists left, Heisenberg being the best, and had made minimal
progress. By the end of the war, they had the beginnings of a nuclear reactor, but the British sank the ferry carrying heavy water (D2O,
deuterium oxide) in a lake in Norway, so they were prevented from any experimentation except with natural uranium which won’t work.
The Japanese had two programs going, one run by the Navy and one run by
the Army. They were both underfunded, under manned, and neither one made
any serious progress. Both were cancelled before the end of the war.
There were rumors that both Japan and Germany had set off atomic bombs
at the end of the war, but no scientific evidence has ever been found
for it. The early bombs were VERY inefficient and would have given off a huge flash and left a big radioactive area, none of which has ever been found. Not even a trace.
It might be added that the facilities to separate the U238/U235 isotopes were HUGE and required enormous amounts of electricity. This was never available in Germany and the Japanese had no extra power too spare,
either, and in either case there has never been a trace of a facility capable of isotope separation been found.
Please note that although both had cyclotrons that could separate
isotopes, they made nanogram quantities, not tens of kilogram quantities.
--------------------------
Dan Gall, worked at Canadian Armed Forces (1972-1997)
Answered February 8
Germany had decided in 1939 that nuclear power was not suitable for
weapons, although they were working on developing nuclear power
reactors. The allies had developed a workable ‘pile’ (early reactor) in 1942 and with 500 scientists working on it developed a bomb in July
1945. The Germans were not working on a weapon, and only had 10
scientists on the project and still hadnt built a pile in 1945. The
earliest they could have had a weapon was 1950 but more likely 1955.
The Japanese didn’t have a dedicated project and were not working on a weapon. They had 1 scientist working on nuclear studies.
98 views · Answer requested by Phil Swanson
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote:-----------------------
Some interesting reminders here:
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
On 10/31/2021 9:12 AM, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote:-----------------------
Some interesting reminders here:
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
Dear William,
I'm glad you are interested in this subject.
Do you have any thoughts to share?
On Monday, November 1, 2021 at 1:44:57 PM UTC-4, a425couple wrote:of the most important documents (and other evidence). There were in fact various parts and pieces that leaked through the postwar western Allied clampdown on German, Japanese, and Italian work in the field, but you really had to dig deep and wide to
On 10/31/2021 9:12 AM, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote:-----------------------
Some interesting reminders here:
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Dear William,
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
I'm glad you are interested in this subject.
Do you have any thoughts to share?
Yes, thank you.
Anyone who is truly interested in WWII Axis WMD development must keep the following factors in mind.
1. The great majority of the most crucial and revealing documents which describe the true extent of Axis work on WMDs, especially of the nuclear variety, were highly classified for 50 years or longer past the end of WWII. Note that I did not say "all"
2. Many of the most important sites in the Axis nuclear effort fell to the Soviets at war's end. The Cold War which swiftly ensued served to hide or at least greatly obscure these locations from western observers and scholars.scientist, spent nearly a decade and a great deal of his own money to conduct a truly global search for primary source information about what the Germans (and to a lesser extent, Japan and Italy) were doing in terms of nuclear weapons R&D. The results
3. The Cold War itself kept most western historians and public intellectuals focused on the Soviets and the looming threat of nuclear Armageddon rather than on research to better establish the true extent and postwar influence of Axis work in the field.
4. By far the most important development in WWII historiography since the end of the Cold War was published online in 2020. This was Dr. Todd Rider's immense and extremely thorough book, "Forgotten Creators". Rider, a former MIT senior staff
On 10/02/2023 18:59, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:of the most important documents (and other evidence). There were in fact various parts and pieces that leaked through the postwar western Allied clampdown on German, Japanese, and Italian work in the field, but you really had to dig deep and wide to
On Monday, November 1, 2021 at 1:44:57 PM UTC-4, a425couple wrote:
On 10/31/2021 9:12 AM, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote:-----------------------
Some interesting reminders here:
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Dear William,
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
I'm glad you are interested in this subject.
Do you have any thoughts to share?
Yes, thank you.
Anyone who is truly interested in WWII Axis WMD development must keep the following factors in mind.
1. The great majority of the most crucial and revealing documents which describe the true extent of Axis work on WMDs, especially of the nuclear variety, were highly classified for 50 years or longer past the end of WWII. Note that I did not say "all"
field.2. Many of the most important sites in the Axis nuclear effort fell to the Soviets at war's end. The Cold War which swiftly ensued served to hide or at least greatly obscure these locations from western observers and scholars.
3. The Cold War itself kept most western historians and public intellectuals focused on the Soviets and the looming threat of nuclear Armageddon rather than on research to better establish the true extent and postwar influence of Axis work in the
scientist, spent nearly a decade and a great deal of his own money to conduct a truly global search for primary source information about what the Germans (and to a lesser extent, Japan and Italy) were doing in terms of nuclear weapons R&D. The results4. By far the most important development in WWII historiography since the end of the Cold War was published online in 2020. This was Dr. Todd Rider's immense and extremely thorough book, "Forgotten Creators". Rider, a former MIT senior staff
Far from being clamped down there were several books published, the transcripts of conversations overheard by British intelligence of German Nuclear scientists were released and the German Nuclear sites such as Haigerloch were thoroughly investigated.
https://history.aip.org/exhibits/heisenberg/farm-hall.html
The bottom line is that typical Nazi fashion Germant had at least 3 different projects going on none of which had anything like the
resources to get anywhere. In 1945 they tried to build a nuclear reactor
and were fortunate it didnt work as it had no control rods.
PS having worked in the British Nuclear Industry at Harwell and for EdF
in Paris I do have some knowledge of this subject.
On 10/02/2023 18:59, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:of the most important documents (and other evidence). There were in fact various parts and pieces that leaked through the postwar western Allied clampdown on German, Japanese, and Italian work in the field, but you really had to dig deep and wide to
On Monday, November 1, 2021 at 1:44:57 PM UTC-4, a425couple wrote:
On 10/31/2021 9:12 AM, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote:-----------------------
Some interesting reminders here:
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Dear William,
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
I'm glad you are interested in this subject.
Do you have any thoughts to share?
Yes, thank you.
Anyone who is truly interested in WWII Axis WMD development must keep the following factors in mind.
1. The great majority of the most crucial and revealing documents which describe the true extent of Axis work on WMDs, especially of the nuclear variety, were highly classified for 50 years or longer past the end of WWII. Note that I did not say "all"
field.2. Many of the most important sites in the Axis nuclear effort fell to the Soviets at war's end. The Cold War which swiftly ensued served to hide or at least greatly obscure these locations from western observers and scholars.
3. The Cold War itself kept most western historians and public intellectuals focused on the Soviets and the looming threat of nuclear Armageddon rather than on research to better establish the true extent and postwar influence of Axis work in the
scientist, spent nearly a decade and a great deal of his own money to conduct a truly global search for primary source information about what the Germans (and to a lesser extent, Japan and Italy) were doing in terms of nuclear weapons R&D. The results4. By far the most important development in WWII historiography since the end of the Cold War was published online in 2020. This was Dr. Todd Rider's immense and extremely thorough book, "Forgotten Creators". Rider, a former MIT senior staff
Far from being clamped down there were several books published, the transcripts of conversations overheard by British intelligence of German Nuclear scientists were released and the German Nuclear sites such as Haigerloch were thoroughly investigated.
https://history.aip.org/exhibits/heisenberg/farm-hall.html
The bottom line is that typical Nazi fashion Germant had at least 3 different projects going on none of which had anything like the
resources to get anywhere. In 1945 they tried to build a nuclear reactor
and were fortunate it didnt work as it had no control rods.
PS having worked in the British Nuclear Industry at Harwell and for EdF
in Paris I do have some knowledge of this subject.
On Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 11:36:37 AM UTC-5, Keith Willshaw wrote:all" of the most important documents (and other evidence). There were in fact various parts and pieces that leaked through the postwar western Allied clampdown on German, Japanese, and Italian work in the field, but you really had to dig deep and wide to
On 10/02/2023 18:59, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Monday, November 1, 2021 at 1:44:57 PM UTC-4, a425couple wrote:
On 10/31/2021 9:12 AM, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote: >>>> Some interesting reminders here:-----------------------
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Dear William,
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
I'm glad you are interested in this subject.
Do you have any thoughts to share?
Yes, thank you.
Anyone who is truly interested in WWII Axis WMD development must keep the following factors in mind.
1. The great majority of the most crucial and revealing documents which describe the true extent of Axis work on WMDs, especially of the nuclear variety, were highly classified for 50 years or longer past the end of WWII. Note that I did not say "
field.2. Many of the most important sites in the Axis nuclear effort fell to the Soviets at war's end. The Cold War which swiftly ensued served to hide or at least greatly obscure these locations from western observers and scholars.
3. The Cold War itself kept most western historians and public intellectuals focused on the Soviets and the looming threat of nuclear Armageddon rather than on research to better establish the true extent and postwar influence of Axis work in the
scientist, spent nearly a decade and a great deal of his own money to conduct a truly global search for primary source information about what the Germans (and to a lesser extent, Japan and Italy) were doing in terms of nuclear weapons R&D. The results4. By far the most important development in WWII historiography since the end of the Cold War was published online in 2020. This was Dr. Todd Rider's immense and extremely thorough book, "Forgotten Creators". Rider, a former MIT senior staff
is, in 1995 and later. That means that not one of the books you have read had any of the information in them that has since been---finally---declassified. Here are some examples.Far from being clamped down there were several books published, the transcripts of conversations overheard by British intelligence of German Nuclear scientists were released and the German Nuclear sites such as Haigerloch were thoroughly investigated.
https://history.aip.org/exhibits/heisenberg/farm-hall.html
The bottom line is that typical Nazi fashion Germant had at least 3 different projects going on none of which had anything like the
resources to get anywhere. In 1945 they tried to build a nuclear reactor and were fortunate it didnt work as it had no control rods.
PS having worked in the British Nuclear Industry at Harwell and for EdF----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
in Paris I do have some knowledge of this subject.
All you have done is reiterate the conventional postwar - Cold War version of events, albeit with slightly more detail than the usual chorus.
I repeat: the great majority (though not all) of the most important documentation for a much larger and far more advanced WWII German nuclear weapons program did NOT appear in public sources until 50 years or longer after the end of the conflict, that
Philip Morrison to Robert Furman. The German Reichspost and Nuclear Research. 24 April 1944. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 170, Folder 32.60-1 GERMANY: Summary Reports (1944)]in the early days of this project and also in the published sources. Lyons rather ostentatiously signs his letter as coming from the Office for Special Physical Questions of the Research Division of the German Reichspost (Amt f¨ur physikalische
We now have three independent pieces of evidence that the Reichspost is interested in neutron research or wishes us to think that:
1) Several years ago M. von Ardenne thanked the Reichspost minister, a man named Ohnesorge, for supporting the entrance of von Ardenne’s laboratory into work in nuclear physics.
2) In October 1943 (Naturwissenschaften, 31, p. 507) a man, otherwise unknown to us, named D. Lyons, published a mathematical letter on the slowing down of neutrons in homogeneous mixtures. The material of the letter is rather similar to much work done
3) The information from Swiss sources which you showed us this week mentioned that S. Flugge has left Hahn to go to work for the Reichspost.about it in such a direct way as from Lyons’ note, but confirm it in the rather indirect way of (1) and (3) above. I would suggest that you formulate inquiries about the activity of the Reichspost in the Tempelhof laboratories to whoever will know most
It will be clear to you that there is something rather odd in this affair of the Reichspost’s becoming interested in a field so very far from the radio and telephone research they have carried out in the past. It is equally strange that we learn
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------981 Generalleutnant KITTEL (Comd. METZ and Comd. 462 Volksgren. Div.) Captd METZ 22 Nov 44
Philip Morrison and Karl Cohen. 31 July 1944. Appraisal of Enemy Bomb Production. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 168, Folder 203.11—Tech. Countermeasures + RW—1943–1944]
APPRAISAL OF ENEMY BOMB PRODUCTION
Summary
Recent evidence essentially confirms our earlier general statements on enemy bomb production. The reports now at hand lead us to conclude:
1. A German “Y” project has been underway since early 1943.
2. A D2O pile is in operation, but we do not believe that this is on production level.
3. It is implied that a separation method is operating at a production level, for it is surely improbable that the enemy will organize a utilization group without something to use.
We include a time schedule, and a technical discuss of the probable means employed.
Enemy production of devices can be as high as:
1. 1 device every 3 months—on the assumption that 30 kg of material are required per device.
2. 1 device every month—on the assumption that 10 kg of material are required per device.
In either case the first completed device could be in enemy hands now.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1118. [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 284–285] M 159—General der Panzertruppen Von THOMA (GOC German AFRIKORPS) Captd MIDDLE EAST 4 Nov 42 CS/
Information received: 10 Jan 1945Generalmajor FRANZ (Comd., 256 V.G. Div.) Captured BIRNFELD 8 Apr 45 CS/1965—Generalmajor GOERBIG (Comd., SENNE, Captured BAD GRUND 10 Apr 45
TRANSLATION
KITTEL: (Re atom bomb). It’s a perfectly horrible thing.
THOMA: A technical man has written about it, saying the problem has been completely solved theoretically, but that the process can’t be controlled(?).
KITTEL: That’s the question. At the passing-out parade of an officer’s course the FUHRER—I ¨ sent for one of the officers personally, for they were the ones who were at METZ—
THOMA: He’s lying. There’s absolutely no such thing as the atom business.
KITTEL: Unfortunately there is.
THOMA: Then he would have used it long ago.
KITTEL: No; he isn’t using it, because the others have promised to retaliate with chemical warfare. [...]
THOMA: But there’s no such thing as an atom bomb.
KITTEL: The experiments with it are carried out on BORNHOLM; the island has been evacuated and no-one may enter or leave the place.
THOMA: What do they do there?
KITTEL: They carry out their experiments there. Apparently they’ve got another trump card up their sleeve.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1163(C). [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 84–85] CS/1948—Generalleutnant BOINEBURG (Comd., BERGEN (HANNOVER)) Captd ALLSTADT 13 Apr 45 CS/1963—
Information received: 29 Apr 1945fired as far as NEW YORK or elsewhere. (?)
TRANSLATION (?)
FRANZ: I hope HIMMLER doesn’t fire V-6 or V-7. (?)
GOERBIG: Do you really think we still have something up our sleeves? (?)
FRANZ: Yes, I believe so most definitely. I mean to say it wasn’t ready; they hadn’t advanced far enough to be brought into use. But I’m certain that a lot of experiments were in progress; it is a fact that some of those projectiles could be
GOERBIG: Did you get that from a reliable source? (?)next time a thing like this starts it’ll be ghastly. If HIMMLER and his faithful followers turn up one day with all the patents etc., with a sample, it will not be viewed with displeasure by STALIN. There is a risk of HIMMLER betraying the V-weapon
FRANZ: I know that for certain. (?)
GOERBIG: With what effect? (?)
FRANZ: With a colossal explosive effect, a strong detonation which really would wipe out everything within a radius of 2 or 3 km. However, the thing isn’t ready for immediate use yet. They couldn’t make any progress, but next time they will and
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------be traced and questioned in detail.
Edmund Tilley. Brief Operational Report on [censored] and Other Germans and Italians Connected with Project Abstract. 19 August 1947. NARA RG 319, Entry A1-134A, Box 29, Folder Operation Oberjoch:
25. Prof. Dr. NIELS [Walter Nielsch?], now said to be in the United States, was, according to [censored,] concerned with chemical and atomic problems at TUCHELER HEIDE and produced a number of atomic bombs, weighing from 1 to 5 kilograms. NIELS should
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Thuringia. For the preparations of the tests the local residents are supposed to be transported away by an SS detail; the whole operation is reported to be undertaken in strictest secrecy. The explosions are supposed to take place in a wooded area. For
General Ivan Ilyichev. 15 November 1944. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
15 November 1944 Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source in Germany reports: “The Germans are preparing to conduct tests of a new secret weapon, which has a large destructive power. The test explosion of a bomb of unusual construction is being prepared under highest secrecy in
CONCLUSION. In the last months our source has reported more and more often about the feverish efforts of the Germans to test ever more powerful weapons and their means of delivery. Probably these experiments lead directly to an attempt of the Germansto actually carry out tests of atom bombs, about whose existence we have only incomplete, scanty information.”
Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army Lieutenant General Ilyichevexplosion. Buildings and fortifications specially constructed for the tests have been destroyed.
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov Nr. 4 — into archive
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Ivan Ilyichev. 23 March 1945. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
[2]3 March 1945
Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ
General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source from Germany reports:
“The Germans have in recent times carried out two large-capacity bomb explosions in Thuringia. The explosions took place in a forest area, under conditions of strictest secrecy. Trees fell at a distance of 500–600 meters from the center of the
Prisoners of war who were near the epicenter of the explosion died, often without leaving a trace. Prisoners of war who were in the area beyond the center of the explosion have burns on their face and body, the strength of which depends on theirposition in relation to the epicenter of the explosion. The tests were carried out in a remote deserted area. The regime of secrecy at the test site was at maximum level. Entrance and exit from the territory are by special pass only. SS soldiers have
The bomb, supposedly filled with uranium 235 and weighing approximately two tons, was brought to the test site on a specially constructed truck. Dewars of liquid oxygen were delivered together with it. The bomb was permanently guarded by 20 guards withdogs. The bomb explosion was accompanied by a large explosive wave and high temperature. In addition, a massive radioactive effect was observed. The bomb is a sphere with a diameter of 130 cm.
The bomb consists of:the external surface of the cadmium layer. Each of the bars is supplied with one detonator or two electrical fuses.
1. High-voltage discharge tube, which is charged by special generators
2. A sphere made of metal uranium 235
3. A delay mechanism
4. Protective casing
5. Explosive substance
6. Detonating mechanism
7. Steel casing
All parts of the bomb fit inside each other.
Initiator or bomb fuse.
Consists of a special tube, which creates fast neutrons. It is charged by special generators, which create high voltage inside the tube. As a result, fast neutrons attack active material.
Active bomb material.
Active bomb material is uranium 235. It represents a sphere with an opening into which an initiator is inserted. Once this is done, the opening is sealed by a cork made of uranium 235.
Protective casing.
The uranium sphere is encased in a protective aluminum casing, which is covered by a layer of cadmium. This significantly slows down thermal neutrons emanating from uranium 235, which can cause premature detonation.
Explosive matter.
After the layer of cadmium it is placed inside explosives that consist of porous TNT saturated with liquid oxygen; TNT is made up of bars of a specially chosen shape. The inner surface of the bars has a spherical curvature, which is the same as that of
Casing.aluminum sphere, covered in cadmium, is sealed off by a cork, on top of which the last bar of TNT is placed. Next, liquid oxygen is pumped through the opening inside a protective casing, which covers the TNT. After this the bomb is ready for deployment.
TNT is covered by a protective layer made of a light aluminum alloy. A blasting mechanism is attached on top of this casing.
Exterior casing.
An exterior casing of armored steel is installed above the blasting mechanism.
Fairing.
A fairing made of a light alloy can be installed on top of the armored casing for future installation on a rocket of the V-type.
Bomb assembly.
The sphere, which consists of metal uranium, is placed inside a protective casing, which consists of aluminum, covered in a layer of cadmium, so that the opening in the sphere coinciding with the opening is sealed off by a uranium cork. After this the
Bomb ignition.reaction Next, the detonating mechanism detonates the explosive matter, after which a shock from the explosion of the external layer of TNT mixed with liquid oxygen takes place, which is directed toward the center. This allows the uranium to reach a
The bomb ignition is carried out with the help of a high-voltage discharge tube. It forms a flow of neutrons, which attack the active material. When the flow of neutrons impacts upon uranium, element 93 fissions, which speeds up the creation of a chain
Ahead of this, before the explosion, the uranium sphere is irradiated with gamma-rays, the energy of which does not exceed 6 million electron volts, which many times increases its explosive qualities.He also states that he has infor mation on a new type torpedo which is radar controlled and leave no trace in water.
CONCLUSION.
Without doubt, the Germans are carrying out tests of a bomb of high destructive force. In the event of their successful conclusion and production of such bombs in sufficient quantities, they will have weapons capable of slowing down our advance.
Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
Lieutenant General Ilyichev
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin
” Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov
” Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov
” Nr. 4 — into archive
16 pp.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HQ CIC, USFET, Region Munich IV, Munich Sub-Regional Office, 25 April 1946. Subject: Wilhelm Voss. Declassified 2006 [NARA RG 263, Entry ZZ-18, Box 133, File Voss, Friedrich Wilhelm].
1. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS reported to this office 24 April 1946. Subject was the director of the Skoda Works and Bruenner Waffenwerke in Prague, Czechoslovakia from 1939–1945. Subject claims that he has valuable information on atom bomb research in Germany.
2. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS was born 1 July 1896 in Rostock, Mecklenburg. [...] He was one of the founders of Reichswerke Hermann Goering and in 1938 became its commercial director. In 1939 VOSS was appointed director of Skoda and Bruenner Waffenwerke byGoering.
3. Subject states that the two men that were responsible for research on the most secret weapons at Skoda were SS Gruppenfuehrer Prof. KAMMLER and his deputy SS Oberfuehrer PURUCKER. On the 10 May 1945 VOSS and PURUCKER were in Schimelitz, fleeing inthe direction of the American troops. PURUCKER was driving a large civilian car which contained many of the plans on the atom bomb. This car plus material fell into the hands of the Russians, and VOSS was separated from PURUCKER. VOSS at present does not
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------that should have caused historians and students of the conflict to question the official line.
There are literally hundreds more additional documents that say the same and similar as the ones you just read, and probably more like thousands. PS Here are a couple of provocative public statements / writings made by well known Allied high commanders
Dwight D. Eisenhower. 1948. Crusade in Europe. Ch. 13–14, pp. 229, 258–260.months staff officers from Washington arrived at my headquarters to give me the latest calculations concerning German progress in the development of new weapons, including as possibilities bacteriological and atomic weapons. These reports were highly
“Alarming Intelligence reports concerning the progress of the Germans in developing new long-range weapons of great destructive capacity also indicated the advisability of attacking [launching D-Day] early. From time to time during the spring [1944]
General George C. Marshall. 1 September 1945 (publicly released 10 October 1945). Third and Final Biennial Report to the Secretary of War. In George C. Marshall. 1996.assaults. Allied resources were searched through again and again, and strategy reconsidered in the light of the deficiencies. These conclusions seemed inescapable: France must be invaded in 1944, to shorten the war by facilitating the advance
Biennial Reports of the Chief of Staff of the United States Army to the Secretary of War: 1 July 1939 – 30 June 1945. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing
Office. pp. 132, 210. [history.army.mil/html/books/070/70-57/CMH Pub 70-57.pdf ]
Victory in this global war depended on the successful execution of OVERLORD. That must not fail. Yet the Japanese could not be permitted meanwhile to entrench in their stolen empire, and China must not be allowed to fall victim to further Japanese
westward of the Soviet forces. At the same time German technological advances such as in the development of atomic explosives made it imperative that we attack before these terrible weapons could be turned against us. In addition, the pressure on theJapanese in the Pacific must not be relaxed. Communications with China must be reopened. Resources were allocated accordingly. The balance was extremely delicate but we had to go ahead. [...]
Between Germany and America in 1914 and again in 1939 stood Great Britain and the USSR, France, Poland, and the other countries of Europe. Because the technique of destruction had not progressed to its present peak, these nations had to be eliminatedand the Atlantic Ocean crossed by ships before our factories could be brought within the range of the enemy guns. At the close ofthe German war in Europe they were just on the outer fringes of the range of fire from an enemy in Europe. Goering stated
On Wednesday, August 30, 2023 at 12:28:23 PM UTC-4, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:all" of the most important documents (and other evidence). There were in fact various parts and pieces that leaked through the postwar western Allied clampdown on German, Japanese, and Italian work in the field, but you really had to dig deep and wide to
On Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 11:36:37 AM UTC-5, Keith Willshaw wrote:
On 10/02/2023 18:59, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Monday, November 1, 2021 at 1:44:57 PM UTC-4, a425couple wrote:
On 10/31/2021 9:12 AM, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote: >>>> Some interesting reminders here:-----------------------
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Dear William,
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
I'm glad you are interested in this subject.
Do you have any thoughts to share?
Yes, thank you.
Anyone who is truly interested in WWII Axis WMD development must keep the following factors in mind.
1. The great majority of the most crucial and revealing documents which describe the true extent of Axis work on WMDs, especially of the nuclear variety, were highly classified for 50 years or longer past the end of WWII. Note that I did not say "
field.2. Many of the most important sites in the Axis nuclear effort fell to the Soviets at war's end. The Cold War which swiftly ensued served to hide or at least greatly obscure these locations from western observers and scholars.
3. The Cold War itself kept most western historians and public intellectuals focused on the Soviets and the looming threat of nuclear Armageddon rather than on research to better establish the true extent and postwar influence of Axis work in the
scientist, spent nearly a decade and a great deal of his own money to conduct a truly global search for primary source information about what the Germans (and to a lesser extent, Japan and Italy) were doing in terms of nuclear weapons R&D. The results4. By far the most important development in WWII historiography since the end of the Cold War was published online in 2020. This was Dr. Todd Rider's immense and extremely thorough book, "Forgotten Creators". Rider, a former MIT senior staff
that is, in 1995 and later. That means that not one of the books you have read had any of the information in them that has since been---finally---declassified. Here are some examples.Far from being clamped down there were several books published, the transcripts of conversations overheard by British intelligence of German Nuclear scientists were released and the German Nuclear sites such as Haigerloch were thoroughly investigated.
https://history.aip.org/exhibits/heisenberg/farm-hall.html
The bottom line is that typical Nazi fashion Germant had at least 3 different projects going on none of which had anything like the resources to get anywhere. In 1945 they tried to build a nuclear reactor and were fortunate it didnt work as it had no control rods.
PS having worked in the British Nuclear Industry at Harwell and for EdF in Paris I do have some knowledge of this subject.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All you have done is reiterate the conventional postwar - Cold War version of events, albeit with slightly more detail than the usual chorus.
I repeat: the great majority (though not all) of the most important documentation for a much larger and far more advanced WWII German nuclear weapons program did NOT appear in public sources until 50 years or longer after the end of the conflict,
done in the early days of this project and also in the published sources. Lyons rather ostentatiously signs his letter as coming from the Office for Special Physical Questions of the Research Division of the German Reichspost (Amt f¨ur physikalischePhilip Morrison to Robert Furman. The German Reichspost and Nuclear Research. 24 April 1944. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 170, Folder 32.60-1 GERMANY: Summary Reports (1944)]
We now have three independent pieces of evidence that the Reichspost is interested in neutron research or wishes us to think that:
1) Several years ago M. von Ardenne thanked the Reichspost minister, a man named Ohnesorge, for supporting the entrance of von Ardenne’s laboratory into work in nuclear physics.
2) In October 1943 (Naturwissenschaften, 31, p. 507) a man, otherwise unknown to us, named D. Lyons, published a mathematical letter on the slowing down of neutrons in homogeneous mixtures. The material of the letter is rather similar to much work
about it in such a direct way as from Lyons’ note, but confirm it in the rather indirect way of (1) and (3) above. I would suggest that you formulate inquiries about the activity of the Reichspost in the Tempelhof laboratories to whoever will know most3) The information from Swiss sources which you showed us this week mentioned that S. Flugge has left Hahn to go to work for the Reichspost.
It will be clear to you that there is something rather odd in this affair of the Reichspost’s becoming interested in a field so very far from the radio and telephone research they have carried out in the past. It is equally strange that we learn
981 Generalleutnant KITTEL (Comd. METZ and Comd. 462 Volksgren. Div.) Captd METZ 22 Nov 44-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Philip Morrison and Karl Cohen. 31 July 1944. Appraisal of Enemy Bomb Production. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 168, Folder 203.11—Tech. Countermeasures + RW—1943–1944]
APPRAISAL OF ENEMY BOMB PRODUCTION
Summary
Recent evidence essentially confirms our earlier general statements on enemy bomb production. The reports now at hand lead us to conclude:
1. A German “Y” project has been underway since early 1943.
2. A D2O pile is in operation, but we do not believe that this is on production level.
3. It is implied that a separation method is operating at a production level, for it is surely improbable that the enemy will organize a utilization group without something to use.
We include a time schedule, and a technical discuss of the probable means employed.
Enemy production of devices can be as high as:
1. 1 device every 3 months—on the assumption that 30 kg of material are required per device.
2. 1 device every month—on the assumption that 10 kg of material are required per device.
In either case the first completed device could be in enemy hands now.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1118. [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 284–285] M 159—General der Panzertruppen Von THOMA (GOC German AFRIKORPS) Captd MIDDLE EAST 4 Nov 42 CS/
Generalmajor FRANZ (Comd., 256 V.G. Div.) Captured BIRNFELD 8 Apr 45 CS/1965—Generalmajor GOERBIG (Comd., SENNE, Captured BAD GRUND 10 Apr 45Information received: 10 Jan 1945
TRANSLATION
KITTEL: (Re atom bomb). It’s a perfectly horrible thing.
THOMA: A technical man has written about it, saying the problem has been completely solved theoretically, but that the process can’t be controlled(?).
KITTEL: That’s the question. At the passing-out parade of an officer’s course the FUHRER—I ¨ sent for one of the officers personally, for they were the ones who were at METZ—
THOMA: He’s lying. There’s absolutely no such thing as the atom business.
KITTEL: Unfortunately there is.
THOMA: Then he would have used it long ago.
KITTEL: No; he isn’t using it, because the others have promised to retaliate with chemical warfare. [...]
THOMA: But there’s no such thing as an atom bomb.
KITTEL: The experiments with it are carried out on BORNHOLM; the island has been evacuated and no-one may enter or leave the place.
THOMA: What do they do there?
KITTEL: They carry out their experiments there. Apparently they’ve got another trump card up their sleeve.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1163(C). [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 84–85] CS/1948—Generalleutnant BOINEBURG (Comd., BERGEN (HANNOVER)) Captd ALLSTADT 13 Apr 45 CS/1963
fired as far as NEW YORK or elsewhere. (?)Information received: 29 Apr 1945
TRANSLATION (?)
FRANZ: I hope HIMMLER doesn’t fire V-6 or V-7. (?)
GOERBIG: Do you really think we still have something up our sleeves? (?)
FRANZ: Yes, I believe so most definitely. I mean to say it wasn’t ready; they hadn’t advanced far enough to be brought into use. But I’m certain that a lot of experiments were in progress; it is a fact that some of those projectiles could be
next time a thing like this starts it’ll be ghastly. If HIMMLER and his faithful followers turn up one day with all the patents etc., with a sample, it will not be viewed with displeasure by STALIN. There is a risk of HIMMLER betraying the V-weaponGOERBIG: Did you get that from a reliable source? (?)
FRANZ: I know that for certain. (?)
GOERBIG: With what effect? (?)
FRANZ: With a colossal explosive effect, a strong detonation which really would wipe out everything within a radius of 2 or 3 km. However, the thing isn’t ready for immediate use yet. They couldn’t make any progress, but next time they will and
should be traced and questioned in detail.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edmund Tilley. Brief Operational Report on [censored] and Other Germans and Italians Connected with Project Abstract. 19 August 1947. NARA RG 319, Entry A1-134A, Box 29, Folder Operation Oberjoch:
25. Prof. Dr. NIELS [Walter Nielsch?], now said to be in the United States, was, according to [censored,] concerned with chemical and atomic problems at TUCHELER HEIDE and produced a number of atomic bombs, weighing from 1 to 5 kilograms. NIELS
Thuringia. For the preparations of the tests the local residents are supposed to be transported away by an SS detail; the whole operation is reported to be undertaken in strictest secrecy. The explosions are supposed to take place in a wooded area. For-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Ivan Ilyichev. 15 November 1944. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
15 November 1944 Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source in Germany reports: “The Germans are preparing to conduct tests of a new secret weapon, which has a large destructive power. The test explosion of a bomb of unusual construction is being prepared under highest secrecy in
to actually carry out tests of atom bombs, about whose existence we have only incomplete, scanty information.”CONCLUSION. In the last months our source has reported more and more often about the feverish efforts of the Germans to test ever more powerful weapons and their means of delivery. Probably these experiments lead directly to an attempt of the Germans
explosion. Buildings and fortifications specially constructed for the tests have been destroyed.Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army Lieutenant General Ilyichev
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov Nr. 4 — into archive
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Ivan Ilyichev. 23 March 1945. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
[2]3 March 1945
Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ
General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source from Germany reports:
“The Germans have in recent times carried out two large-capacity bomb explosions in Thuringia. The explosions took place in a forest area, under conditions of strictest secrecy. Trees fell at a distance of 500–600 meters from the center of the
position in relation to the epicenter of the explosion. The tests were carried out in a remote deserted area. The regime of secrecy at the test site was at maximum level. Entrance and exit from the territory are by special pass only. SS soldiers havePrisoners of war who were near the epicenter of the explosion died, often without leaving a trace. Prisoners of war who were in the area beyond the center of the explosion have burns on their face and body, the strength of which depends on their
with dogs. The bomb explosion was accompanied by a large explosive wave and high temperature. In addition, a massive radioactive effect was observed. The bomb is a sphere with a diameter of 130 cm.The bomb, supposedly filled with uranium 235 and weighing approximately two tons, was brought to the test site on a specially constructed truck. Dewars of liquid oxygen were delivered together with it. The bomb was permanently guarded by 20 guards
of the external surface of the cadmium layer. Each of the bars is supplied with one detonator or two electrical fuses.The bomb consists of:
1. High-voltage discharge tube, which is charged by special generators
2. A sphere made of metal uranium 235
3. A delay mechanism
4. Protective casing
5. Explosive substance
6. Detonating mechanism
7. Steel casing
All parts of the bomb fit inside each other.
Initiator or bomb fuse.
Consists of a special tube, which creates fast neutrons. It is charged by special generators, which create high voltage inside the tube. As a result, fast neutrons attack active material.
Active bomb material.
Active bomb material is uranium 235. It represents a sphere with an opening into which an initiator is inserted. Once this is done, the opening is sealed by a cork made of uranium 235.
Protective casing.
The uranium sphere is encased in a protective aluminum casing, which is covered by a layer of cadmium. This significantly slows down thermal neutrons emanating from uranium 235, which can cause premature detonation.
Explosive matter.
After the layer of cadmium it is placed inside explosives that consist of porous TNT saturated with liquid oxygen; TNT is made up of bars of a specially chosen shape. The inner surface of the bars has a spherical curvature, which is the same as that
the aluminum sphere, covered in cadmium, is sealed off by a cork, on top of which the last bar of TNT is placed. Next, liquid oxygen is pumped through the opening inside a protective casing, which covers the TNT. After this the bomb is ready forCasing.
TNT is covered by a protective layer made of a light aluminum alloy. A blasting mechanism is attached on top of this casing.
Exterior casing.
An exterior casing of armored steel is installed above the blasting mechanism.
Fairing.
A fairing made of a light alloy can be installed on top of the armored casing for future installation on a rocket of the V-type.
Bomb assembly.
The sphere, which consists of metal uranium, is placed inside a protective casing, which consists of aluminum, covered in a layer of cadmium, so that the opening in the sphere coinciding with the opening is sealed off by a uranium cork. After this
chain reaction Next, the detonating mechanism detonates the explosive matter, after which a shock from the explosion of the external layer of TNT mixed with liquid oxygen takes place, which is directed toward the center. This allows the uranium to reachBomb ignition.
The bomb ignition is carried out with the help of a high-voltage discharge tube. It forms a flow of neutrons, which attack the active material. When the flow of neutrons impacts upon uranium, element 93 fissions, which speeds up the creation of a
Germany. He also states that he has infor mation on a new type torpedo which is radar controlled and leave no trace in water.Ahead of this, before the explosion, the uranium sphere is irradiated with gamma-rays, the energy of which does not exceed 6 million electron volts, which many times increases its explosive qualities.
CONCLUSION.
Without doubt, the Germans are carrying out tests of a bomb of high destructive force. In the event of their successful conclusion and production of such bombs in sufficient quantities, they will have weapons capable of slowing down our advance.
Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
Lieutenant General Ilyichev
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin
” Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov
” Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov
” Nr. 4 — into archive
16 pp.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HQ CIC, USFET, Region Munich IV, Munich Sub-Regional Office, 25 April 1946. Subject: Wilhelm Voss. Declassified 2006 [NARA RG 263, Entry ZZ-18, Box 133, File Voss, Friedrich Wilhelm].
1. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS reported to this office 24 April 1946. Subject was the director of the Skoda Works and Bruenner Waffenwerke in Prague, Czechoslovakia from 1939–1945. Subject claims that he has valuable information on atom bomb research in
Goering.2. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS was born 1 July 1896 in Rostock, Mecklenburg. [...] He was one of the founders of Reichswerke Hermann Goering and in 1938 became its commercial director. In 1939 VOSS was appointed director of Skoda and Bruenner Waffenwerke by
the direction of the American troops. PURUCKER was driving a large civilian car which contained many of the plans on the atom bomb. This car plus material fell into the hands of the Russians, and VOSS was separated from PURUCKER. VOSS at present does not3. Subject states that the two men that were responsible for research on the most secret weapons at Skoda were SS Gruppenfuehrer Prof. KAMMLER and his deputy SS Oberfuehrer PURUCKER. On the 10 May 1945 VOSS and PURUCKER were in Schimelitz, fleeing in
commanders that should have caused historians and students of the conflict to question the official line.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are literally hundreds more additional documents that say the same and similar as the ones you just read, and probably more like thousands. PS Here are a couple of provocative public statements / writings made by well known Allied high
months staff officers from Washington arrived at my headquarters to give me the latest calculations concerning German progress in the development of new weapons, including as possibilities bacteriological and atomic weapons. These reports were highlyDwight D. Eisenhower. 1948. Crusade in Europe. Ch. 13–14, pp. 229, 258–260.
“Alarming Intelligence reports concerning the progress of the Germans in developing new long-range weapons of great destructive capacity also indicated the advisability of attacking [launching D-Day] early. From time to time during the spring [1944]
assaults. Allied resources were searched through again and again, and strategy reconsidered in the light of the deficiencies. These conclusions seemed inescapable: France must be invaded in 1944, to shorten the war by facilitating the advanceGeneral George C. Marshall. 1 September 1945 (publicly released 10 October 1945). Third and Final Biennial Report to the Secretary of War. In George C. Marshall. 1996.
Biennial Reports of the Chief of Staff of the United States Army to the Secretary of War: 1 July 1939 – 30 June 1945. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing
Office. pp. 132, 210. [history.army.mil/html/books/070/70-57/CMH Pub 70-57.pdf ]
Victory in this global war depended on the successful execution of OVERLORD. That must not fail. Yet the Japanese could not be permitted meanwhile to entrench in their stolen empire, and China must not be allowed to fall victim to further Japanese
Japanese in the Pacific must not be relaxed. Communications with China must be reopened. Resources were allocated accordingly. The balance was extremely delicate but we had to go ahead. [...]westward of the Soviet forces. At the same time German technological advances such as in the development of atomic explosives made it imperative that we attack before these terrible weapons could be turned against us. In addition, the pressure on the
and the Atlantic Ocean crossed by ships before our factories could be brought within the range of the enemy guns. At the close ofthe German war in Europe they were just on the outer fringes of the range of fire from an enemy in Europe. Goering statedBetween Germany and America in 1914 and again in 1939 stood Great Britain and the USSR, France, Poland, and the other countries of Europe. Because the technique of destruction had not progressed to its present peak, these nations had to be eliminated
Someone clearly spent a good bit of time mixing fact and fiction here to make it seem as if the nazis were hyper-advanced supermen. The bit about porous TNT soaked in liquid oxygen is fantasy.
Dean
On Friday, September 1, 2023 at 7:59:45 AM UTC-4, Dean Markley wrote:say "all" of the most important documents (and other evidence). There were in fact various parts and pieces that leaked through the postwar western Allied clampdown on German, Japanese, and Italian work in the field, but you really had to dig deep and
On Wednesday, August 30, 2023 at 12:28:23 PM UTC-4, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 11:36:37 AM UTC-5, Keith Willshaw wrote:
On 10/02/2023 18:59, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Monday, November 1, 2021 at 1:44:57 PM UTC-4, a425couple wrote:
On 10/31/2021 9:12 AM, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote:-----------------------
Some interesting reminders here:
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Dear William,
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
I'm glad you are interested in this subject.
Do you have any thoughts to share?
Yes, thank you.
Anyone who is truly interested in WWII Axis WMD development must keep the following factors in mind.
1. The great majority of the most crucial and revealing documents which describe the true extent of Axis work on WMDs, especially of the nuclear variety, were highly classified for 50 years or longer past the end of WWII. Note that I did not
the field.2. Many of the most important sites in the Axis nuclear effort fell to the Soviets at war's end. The Cold War which swiftly ensued served to hide or at least greatly obscure these locations from western observers and scholars.
3. The Cold War itself kept most western historians and public intellectuals focused on the Soviets and the looming threat of nuclear Armageddon rather than on research to better establish the true extent and postwar influence of Axis work in
scientist, spent nearly a decade and a great deal of his own money to conduct a truly global search for primary source information about what the Germans (and to a lesser extent, Japan and Italy) were doing in terms of nuclear weapons R&D. The results4. By far the most important development in WWII historiography since the end of the Cold War was published online in 2020. This was Dr. Todd Rider's immense and extremely thorough book, "Forgotten Creators". Rider, a former MIT senior staff
that is, in 1995 and later. That means that not one of the books you have read had any of the information in them that has since been---finally---declassified. Here are some examples.Far from being clamped down there were several books published, the transcripts of conversations overheard by British intelligence of German
Nuclear scientists were released and the German Nuclear sites such as Haigerloch were thoroughly investigated.
https://history.aip.org/exhibits/heisenberg/farm-hall.html
The bottom line is that typical Nazi fashion Germant had at least 3 different projects going on none of which had anything like the resources to get anywhere. In 1945 they tried to build a nuclear reactor
and were fortunate it didnt work as it had no control rods.
PS having worked in the British Nuclear Industry at Harwell and for EdF----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
in Paris I do have some knowledge of this subject.
All you have done is reiterate the conventional postwar - Cold War version of events, albeit with slightly more detail than the usual chorus.
I repeat: the great majority (though not all) of the most important documentation for a much larger and far more advanced WWII German nuclear weapons program did NOT appear in public sources until 50 years or longer after the end of the conflict,
done in the early days of this project and also in the published sources. Lyons rather ostentatiously signs his letter as coming from the Office for Special Physical Questions of the Research Division of the German Reichspost (Amt f¨ur physikalischePhilip Morrison to Robert Furman. The German Reichspost and Nuclear Research. 24 April 1944. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 170, Folder 32.60-1 GERMANY: Summary Reports (1944)]
We now have three independent pieces of evidence that the Reichspost is interested in neutron research or wishes us to think that:
1) Several years ago M. von Ardenne thanked the Reichspost minister, a man named Ohnesorge, for supporting the entrance of von Ardenne’s laboratory into work in nuclear physics.
2) In October 1943 (Naturwissenschaften, 31, p. 507) a man, otherwise unknown to us, named D. Lyons, published a mathematical letter on the slowing down of neutrons in homogeneous mixtures. The material of the letter is rather similar to much work
about it in such a direct way as from Lyons’ note, but confirm it in the rather indirect way of (1) and (3) above. I would suggest that you formulate inquiries about the activity of the Reichspost in the Tempelhof laboratories to whoever will know most3) The information from Swiss sources which you showed us this week mentioned that S. Flugge has left Hahn to go to work for the Reichspost.
It will be clear to you that there is something rather odd in this affair of the Reichspost’s becoming interested in a field so very far from the radio and telephone research they have carried out in the past. It is equally strange that we learn
CS/981 Generalleutnant KITTEL (Comd. METZ and Comd. 462 Volksgren. Div.) Captd METZ 22 Nov 44-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Philip Morrison and Karl Cohen. 31 July 1944. Appraisal of Enemy Bomb Production. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 168, Folder 203.11—Tech. Countermeasures + RW—1943–1944]
APPRAISAL OF ENEMY BOMB PRODUCTION
Summary
Recent evidence essentially confirms our earlier general statements on enemy bomb production. The reports now at hand lead us to conclude:
1. A German “Y” project has been underway since early 1943.
2. A D2O pile is in operation, but we do not believe that this is on production level.
3. It is implied that a separation method is operating at a production level, for it is surely improbable that the enemy will organize a utilization group without something to use.
We include a time schedule, and a technical discuss of the probable means employed.
Enemy production of devices can be as high as:
1. 1 device every 3 months—on the assumption that 30 kg of material are required per device.
2. 1 device every month—on the assumption that 10 kg of material are required per device.
In either case the first completed device could be in enemy hands now.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1118. [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 284–285] M 159—General der Panzertruppen Von THOMA (GOC German AFRIKORPS) Captd MIDDLE EAST 4 Nov 42
1963—Generalmajor FRANZ (Comd., 256 V.G. Div.) Captured BIRNFELD 8 Apr 45 CS/1965—Generalmajor GOERBIG (Comd., SENNE, Captured BAD GRUND 10 Apr 45Information received: 10 Jan 1945
TRANSLATION
KITTEL: (Re atom bomb). It’s a perfectly horrible thing.
THOMA: A technical man has written about it, saying the problem has been completely solved theoretically, but that the process can’t be controlled(?).
KITTEL: That’s the question. At the passing-out parade of an officer’s course the FUHRER—I ¨ sent for one of the officers personally, for they were the ones who were at METZ—
THOMA: He’s lying. There’s absolutely no such thing as the atom business.
KITTEL: Unfortunately there is.
THOMA: Then he would have used it long ago.
KITTEL: No; he isn’t using it, because the others have promised to retaliate with chemical warfare. [...]
THOMA: But there’s no such thing as an atom bomb.
KITTEL: The experiments with it are carried out on BORNHOLM; the island has been evacuated and no-one may enter or leave the place.
THOMA: What do they do there?
KITTEL: They carry out their experiments there. Apparently they’ve got another trump card up their sleeve.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1163(C). [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 84–85] CS/1948—Generalleutnant BOINEBURG (Comd., BERGEN (HANNOVER)) Captd ALLSTADT 13 Apr 45 CS/
fired as far as NEW YORK or elsewhere. (?)Information received: 29 Apr 1945
TRANSLATION (?)
FRANZ: I hope HIMMLER doesn’t fire V-6 or V-7. (?)
GOERBIG: Do you really think we still have something up our sleeves? (?)
FRANZ: Yes, I believe so most definitely. I mean to say it wasn’t ready; they hadn’t advanced far enough to be brought into use. But I’m certain that a lot of experiments were in progress; it is a fact that some of those projectiles could be
next time a thing like this starts it’ll be ghastly. If HIMMLER and his faithful followers turn up one day with all the patents etc., with a sample, it will not be viewed with displeasure by STALIN. There is a risk of HIMMLER betraying the V-weaponGOERBIG: Did you get that from a reliable source? (?)
FRANZ: I know that for certain. (?)
GOERBIG: With what effect? (?)
FRANZ: With a colossal explosive effect, a strong detonation which really would wipe out everything within a radius of 2 or 3 km. However, the thing isn’t ready for immediate use yet. They couldn’t make any progress, but next time they will and
should be traced and questioned in detail.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edmund Tilley. Brief Operational Report on [censored] and Other Germans and Italians Connected with Project Abstract. 19 August 1947. NARA RG 319, Entry A1-134A, Box 29, Folder Operation Oberjoch:
25. Prof. Dr. NIELS [Walter Nielsch?], now said to be in the United States, was, according to [censored,] concerned with chemical and atomic problems at TUCHELER HEIDE and produced a number of atomic bombs, weighing from 1 to 5 kilograms. NIELS
Thuringia. For the preparations of the tests the local residents are supposed to be transported away by an SS detail; the whole operation is reported to be undertaken in strictest secrecy. The explosions are supposed to take place in a wooded area. For-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Ivan Ilyichev. 15 November 1944. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
15 November 1944 Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source in Germany reports: “The Germans are preparing to conduct tests of a new secret weapon, which has a large destructive power. The test explosion of a bomb of unusual construction is being prepared under highest secrecy in
Germans to actually carry out tests of atom bombs, about whose existence we have only incomplete, scanty information.”CONCLUSION. In the last months our source has reported more and more often about the feverish efforts of the Germans to test ever more powerful weapons and their means of delivery. Probably these experiments lead directly to an attempt of the
explosion. Buildings and fortifications specially constructed for the tests have been destroyed.Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army Lieutenant General Ilyichev
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov Nr. 4 — into archive
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Ivan Ilyichev. 23 March 1945. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
[2]3 March 1945
Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ
General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source from Germany reports:
“The Germans have in recent times carried out two large-capacity bomb explosions in Thuringia. The explosions took place in a forest area, under conditions of strictest secrecy. Trees fell at a distance of 500–600 meters from the center of the
position in relation to the epicenter of the explosion. The tests were carried out in a remote deserted area. The regime of secrecy at the test site was at maximum level. Entrance and exit from the territory are by special pass only. SS soldiers havePrisoners of war who were near the epicenter of the explosion died, often without leaving a trace. Prisoners of war who were in the area beyond the center of the explosion have burns on their face and body, the strength of which depends on their
with dogs. The bomb explosion was accompanied by a large explosive wave and high temperature. In addition, a massive radioactive effect was observed. The bomb is a sphere with a diameter of 130 cm.The bomb, supposedly filled with uranium 235 and weighing approximately two tons, was brought to the test site on a specially constructed truck. Dewars of liquid oxygen were delivered together with it. The bomb was permanently guarded by 20 guards
that of the external surface of the cadmium layer. Each of the bars is supplied with one detonator or two electrical fuses.The bomb consists of:
1. High-voltage discharge tube, which is charged by special generators 2. A sphere made of metal uranium 235
3. A delay mechanism
4. Protective casing
5. Explosive substance
6. Detonating mechanism
7. Steel casing
All parts of the bomb fit inside each other.
Initiator or bomb fuse.
Consists of a special tube, which creates fast neutrons. It is charged by special generators, which create high voltage inside the tube. As a result, fast neutrons attack active material.
Active bomb material.
Active bomb material is uranium 235. It represents a sphere with an opening into which an initiator is inserted. Once this is done, the opening is sealed by a cork made of uranium 235.
Protective casing.
The uranium sphere is encased in a protective aluminum casing, which is covered by a layer of cadmium. This significantly slows down thermal neutrons emanating from uranium 235, which can cause premature detonation.
Explosive matter.
After the layer of cadmium it is placed inside explosives that consist of porous TNT saturated with liquid oxygen; TNT is made up of bars of a specially chosen shape. The inner surface of the bars has a spherical curvature, which is the same as
the aluminum sphere, covered in cadmium, is sealed off by a cork, on top of which the last bar of TNT is placed. Next, liquid oxygen is pumped through the opening inside a protective casing, which covers the TNT. After this the bomb is ready forCasing.
TNT is covered by a protective layer made of a light aluminum alloy. A blasting mechanism is attached on top of this casing.
Exterior casing.
An exterior casing of armored steel is installed above the blasting mechanism.
Fairing.
A fairing made of a light alloy can be installed on top of the armored casing for future installation on a rocket of the V-type.
Bomb assembly.
The sphere, which consists of metal uranium, is placed inside a protective casing, which consists of aluminum, covered in a layer of cadmium, so that the opening in the sphere coinciding with the opening is sealed off by a uranium cork. After this
chain reaction Next, the detonating mechanism detonates the explosive matter, after which a shock from the explosion of the external layer of TNT mixed with liquid oxygen takes place, which is directed toward the center. This allows the uranium to reachBomb ignition.
The bomb ignition is carried out with the help of a high-voltage discharge tube. It forms a flow of neutrons, which attack the active material. When the flow of neutrons impacts upon uranium, element 93 fissions, which speeds up the creation of a
Germany. He also states that he has infor mation on a new type torpedo which is radar controlled and leave no trace in water.Ahead of this, before the explosion, the uranium sphere is irradiated with gamma-rays, the energy of which does not exceed 6 million electron volts, which many times increases its explosive qualities.
CONCLUSION.
Without doubt, the Germans are carrying out tests of a bomb of high destructive force. In the event of their successful conclusion and production of such bombs in sufficient quantities, they will have weapons capable of slowing down our advance.
Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
Lieutenant General Ilyichev
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin
” Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov
” Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov
” Nr. 4 — into archive
16 pp.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HQ CIC, USFET, Region Munich IV, Munich Sub-Regional Office, 25 April 1946. Subject: Wilhelm Voss. Declassified 2006 [NARA RG 263, Entry ZZ-18, Box 133, File Voss, Friedrich Wilhelm].
1. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS reported to this office 24 April 1946. Subject was the director of the Skoda Works and Bruenner Waffenwerke in Prague, Czechoslovakia from 1939–1945. Subject claims that he has valuable information on atom bomb research in
Goering.2. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS was born 1 July 1896 in Rostock, Mecklenburg. [...] He was one of the founders of Reichswerke Hermann Goering and in 1938 became its commercial director. In 1939 VOSS was appointed director of Skoda and Bruenner Waffenwerke by
in the direction of the American troops. PURUCKER was driving a large civilian car which contained many of the plans on the atom bomb. This car plus material fell into the hands of the Russians, and VOSS was separated from PURUCKER. VOSS at present does3. Subject states that the two men that were responsible for research on the most secret weapons at Skoda were SS Gruppenfuehrer Prof. KAMMLER and his deputy SS Oberfuehrer PURUCKER. On the 10 May 1945 VOSS and PURUCKER were in Schimelitz, fleeing
commanders that should have caused historians and students of the conflict to question the official line.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are literally hundreds more additional documents that say the same and similar as the ones you just read, and probably more like thousands. PS Here are a couple of provocative public statements / writings made by well known Allied high
1944] months staff officers from Washington arrived at my headquarters to give me the latest calculations concerning German progress in the development of new weapons, including as possibilities bacteriological and atomic weapons. These reports wereDwight D. Eisenhower. 1948. Crusade in Europe. Ch. 13–14, pp. 229, 258–260.
“Alarming Intelligence reports concerning the progress of the Germans in developing new long-range weapons of great destructive capacity also indicated the advisability of attacking [launching D-Day] early. From time to time during the spring [
assaults. Allied resources were searched through again and again, and strategy reconsidered in the light of the deficiencies. These conclusions seemed inescapable: France must be invaded in 1944, to shorten the war by facilitating the advanceGeneral George C. Marshall. 1 September 1945 (publicly released 10 October 1945). Third and Final Biennial Report to the Secretary of War. In George C. Marshall. 1996.
Biennial Reports of the Chief of Staff of the United States Army to the Secretary of War: 1 July 1939 – 30 June 1945. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing
Office. pp. 132, 210. [history.army.mil/html/books/070/70-57/CMH Pub 70-57.pdf ]
Victory in this global war depended on the successful execution of OVERLORD. That must not fail. Yet the Japanese could not be permitted meanwhile to entrench in their stolen empire, and China must not be allowed to fall victim to further Japanese
the Japanese in the Pacific must not be relaxed. Communications with China must be reopened. Resources were allocated accordingly. The balance was extremely delicate but we had to go ahead. [...]westward of the Soviet forces. At the same time German technological advances such as in the development of atomic explosives made it imperative that we attack before these terrible weapons could be turned against us. In addition, the pressure on
eliminated and the Atlantic Ocean crossed by ships before our factories could be brought within the range of the enemy guns. At the close ofthe German war in Europe they were just on the outer fringes of the range of fire from an enemy in Europe. GoeringBetween Germany and America in 1914 and again in 1939 stood Great Britain and the USSR, France, Poland, and the other countries of Europe. Because the technique of destruction had not progressed to its present peak, these nations had to be
Soviet GRU and other high muckety-mucks in which he described the design details in Ivan Ilyichev's original report as "very credible". A number of modern researchers long ago reached the conclusion that the GRU reports are genuine.Someone clearly spent a good bit of time mixing fact and fiction here to make it seem as if the nazis were hyper-advanced supermen. The bit about porous TNT soaked in liquid oxygen is fantasy.
DeanThere is zero interest in Nazis being "hyper-advanced supermen". They were, however, considerably further down the road to advanced nuclear weapons than were the Allies. The top Soviet atomic scientist of that era, Igor Kurchatov, wrote a letter to the
On Tuesday, September 5, 2023 at 4:20:12 PM UTC-4, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:say "all" of the most important documents (and other evidence). There were in fact various parts and pieces that leaked through the postwar western Allied clampdown on German, Japanese, and Italian work in the field, but you really had to dig deep and
On Friday, September 1, 2023 at 7:59:45 AM UTC-4, Dean Markley wrote:
On Wednesday, August 30, 2023 at 12:28:23 PM UTC-4, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 11:36:37 AM UTC-5, Keith Willshaw wrote:
On 10/02/2023 18:59, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Monday, November 1, 2021 at 1:44:57 PM UTC-4, a425couple wrote:
On 10/31/2021 9:12 AM, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote:-----------------------
Some interesting reminders here:
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Dear William,
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
I'm glad you are interested in this subject.
Do you have any thoughts to share?
Yes, thank you.
Anyone who is truly interested in WWII Axis WMD development must keep the following factors in mind.
1. The great majority of the most crucial and revealing documents which describe the true extent of Axis work on WMDs, especially of the nuclear variety, were highly classified for 50 years or longer past the end of WWII. Note that I did not
the field.2. Many of the most important sites in the Axis nuclear effort fell to the Soviets at war's end. The Cold War which swiftly ensued served to hide or at least greatly obscure these locations from western observers and scholars.
3. The Cold War itself kept most western historians and public intellectuals focused on the Soviets and the looming threat of nuclear Armageddon rather than on research to better establish the true extent and postwar influence of Axis work in
scientist, spent nearly a decade and a great deal of his own money to conduct a truly global search for primary source information about what the Germans (and to a lesser extent, Japan and Italy) were doing in terms of nuclear weapons R&D. The results4. By far the most important development in WWII historiography since the end of the Cold War was published online in 2020. This was Dr. Todd Rider's immense and extremely thorough book, "Forgotten Creators". Rider, a former MIT senior staff
that is, in 1995 and later. That means that not one of the books you have read had any of the information in them that has since been---finally---declassified. Here are some examples.Far from being clamped down there were several books published, the transcripts of conversations overheard by British intelligence of German
Nuclear scientists were released and the German Nuclear sites such as
Haigerloch were thoroughly investigated.
https://history.aip.org/exhibits/heisenberg/farm-hall.html
The bottom line is that typical Nazi fashion Germant had at least 3 different projects going on none of which had anything like the resources to get anywhere. In 1945 they tried to build a nuclear reactor
and were fortunate it didnt work as it had no control rods.
PS having worked in the British Nuclear Industry at Harwell and for EdF----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
in Paris I do have some knowledge of this subject.
All you have done is reiterate the conventional postwar - Cold War version of events, albeit with slightly more detail than the usual chorus.
I repeat: the great majority (though not all) of the most important documentation for a much larger and far more advanced WWII German nuclear weapons program did NOT appear in public sources until 50 years or longer after the end of the conflict,
work done in the early days of this project and also in the published sources. Lyons rather ostentatiously signs his letter as coming from the Office for Special Physical Questions of the Research Division of the German Reichspost (Amt f¨urPhilip Morrison to Robert Furman. The German Reichspost and Nuclear Research. 24 April 1944. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 170, Folder 32.60-1 GERMANY: Summary Reports (1944)]
We now have three independent pieces of evidence that the Reichspost is interested in neutron research or wishes us to think that:
1) Several years ago M. von Ardenne thanked the Reichspost minister, a man named Ohnesorge, for supporting the entrance of von Ardenne’s laboratory into work in nuclear physics.
2) In October 1943 (Naturwissenschaften, 31, p. 507) a man, otherwise unknown to us, named D. Lyons, published a mathematical letter on the slowing down of neutrons in homogeneous mixtures. The material of the letter is rather similar to much
learn about it in such a direct way as from Lyons’ note, but confirm it in the rather indirect way of (1) and (3) above. I would suggest that you formulate inquiries about the activity of the Reichspost in the Tempelhof laboratories to whoever will3) The information from Swiss sources which you showed us this week mentioned that S. Flugge has left Hahn to go to work for the Reichspost.
It will be clear to you that there is something rather odd in this affair of the Reichspost’s becoming interested in a field so very far from the radio and telephone research they have carried out in the past. It is equally strange that we
CS/981 Generalleutnant KITTEL (Comd. METZ and Comd. 462 Volksgren. Div.) Captd METZ 22 Nov 44-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Philip Morrison and Karl Cohen. 31 July 1944. Appraisal of Enemy Bomb Production. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 168, Folder 203.11—Tech. Countermeasures + RW—1943–1944]
APPRAISAL OF ENEMY BOMB PRODUCTION
Summary
Recent evidence essentially confirms our earlier general statements on enemy bomb production. The reports now at hand lead us to conclude:
1. A German “Y” project has been underway since early 1943.
2. A D2O pile is in operation, but we do not believe that this is on production level.
3. It is implied that a separation method is operating at a production level, for it is surely improbable that the enemy will organize a utilization group without something to use.
We include a time schedule, and a technical discuss of the probable means employed.
Enemy production of devices can be as high as:
1. 1 device every 3 months—on the assumption that 30 kg of material are required per device.
2. 1 device every month—on the assumption that 10 kg of material are required per device.
In either case the first completed device could be in enemy hands now.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1118. [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 284–285] M 159—General der Panzertruppen Von THOMA (GOC German AFRIKORPS) Captd MIDDLE EAST 4 Nov 42
1963—Generalmajor FRANZ (Comd., 256 V.G. Div.) Captured BIRNFELD 8 Apr 45 CS/1965—Generalmajor GOERBIG (Comd., SENNE, Captured BAD GRUND 10 Apr 45Information received: 10 Jan 1945
TRANSLATION
KITTEL: (Re atom bomb). It’s a perfectly horrible thing.
THOMA: A technical man has written about it, saying the problem has been completely solved theoretically, but that the process can’t be controlled(?).
KITTEL: That’s the question. At the passing-out parade of an officer’s course the FUHRER—I ¨ sent for one of the officers personally, for they were the ones who were at METZ—
THOMA: He’s lying. There’s absolutely no such thing as the atom business.
KITTEL: Unfortunately there is.
THOMA: Then he would have used it long ago.
KITTEL: No; he isn’t using it, because the others have promised to retaliate with chemical warfare. [...]
THOMA: But there’s no such thing as an atom bomb.
KITTEL: The experiments with it are carried out on BORNHOLM; the island has been evacuated and no-one may enter or leave the place.
THOMA: What do they do there?
KITTEL: They carry out their experiments there. Apparently they’ve got another trump card up their sleeve.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1163(C). [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 84–85] CS/1948—Generalleutnant BOINEBURG (Comd., BERGEN (HANNOVER)) Captd ALLSTADT 13 Apr 45 CS/
be fired as far as NEW YORK or elsewhere. (?)Information received: 29 Apr 1945
TRANSLATION (?)
FRANZ: I hope HIMMLER doesn’t fire V-6 or V-7. (?)
GOERBIG: Do you really think we still have something up our sleeves? (?)
FRANZ: Yes, I believe so most definitely. I mean to say it wasn’t ready; they hadn’t advanced far enough to be brought into use. But I’m certain that a lot of experiments were in progress; it is a fact that some of those projectiles could
and next time a thing like this starts it’ll be ghastly. If HIMMLER and his faithful followers turn up one day with all the patents etc., with a sample, it will not be viewed with displeasure by STALIN. There is a risk of HIMMLER betraying the V-weaponGOERBIG: Did you get that from a reliable source? (?)
FRANZ: I know that for certain. (?)
GOERBIG: With what effect? (?)
FRANZ: With a colossal explosive effect, a strong detonation which really would wipe out everything within a radius of 2 or 3 km. However, the thing isn’t ready for immediate use yet. They couldn’t make any progress, but next time they will
should be traced and questioned in detail.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edmund Tilley. Brief Operational Report on [censored] and Other Germans and Italians Connected with Project Abstract. 19 August 1947. NARA RG 319, Entry A1-134A, Box 29, Folder Operation Oberjoch:
25. Prof. Dr. NIELS [Walter Nielsch?], now said to be in the United States, was, according to [censored,] concerned with chemical and atomic problems at TUCHELER HEIDE and produced a number of atomic bombs, weighing from 1 to 5 kilograms. NIELS
Thuringia. For the preparations of the tests the local residents are supposed to be transported away by an SS detail; the whole operation is reported to be undertaken in strictest secrecy. The explosions are supposed to take place in a wooded area. For-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Ivan Ilyichev. 15 November 1944. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
15 November 1944 Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source in Germany reports: “The Germans are preparing to conduct tests of a new secret weapon, which has a large destructive power. The test explosion of a bomb of unusual construction is being prepared under highest secrecy in
Germans to actually carry out tests of atom bombs, about whose existence we have only incomplete, scanty information.”CONCLUSION. In the last months our source has reported more and more often about the feverish efforts of the Germans to test ever more powerful weapons and their means of delivery. Probably these experiments lead directly to an attempt of the
the explosion. Buildings and fortifications specially constructed for the tests have been destroyed.Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army Lieutenant General Ilyichev
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov Nr. 4 — into archive
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Ivan Ilyichev. 23 March 1945. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
[2]3 March 1945
Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ
General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source from Germany reports:
“The Germans have in recent times carried out two large-capacity bomb explosions in Thuringia. The explosions took place in a forest area, under conditions of strictest secrecy. Trees fell at a distance of 500–600 meters from the center of
position in relation to the epicenter of the explosion. The tests were carried out in a remote deserted area. The regime of secrecy at the test site was at maximum level. Entrance and exit from the territory are by special pass only. SS soldiers havePrisoners of war who were near the epicenter of the explosion died, often without leaving a trace. Prisoners of war who were in the area beyond the center of the explosion have burns on their face and body, the strength of which depends on their
guards with dogs. The bomb explosion was accompanied by a large explosive wave and high temperature. In addition, a massive radioactive effect was observed. The bomb is a sphere with a diameter of 130 cm.The bomb, supposedly filled with uranium 235 and weighing approximately two tons, was brought to the test site on a specially constructed truck. Dewars of liquid oxygen were delivered together with it. The bomb was permanently guarded by 20
that of the external surface of the cadmium layer. Each of the bars is supplied with one detonator or two electrical fuses.The bomb consists of:
1. High-voltage discharge tube, which is charged by special generators 2. A sphere made of metal uranium 235
3. A delay mechanism
4. Protective casing
5. Explosive substance
6. Detonating mechanism
7. Steel casing
All parts of the bomb fit inside each other.
Initiator or bomb fuse.
Consists of a special tube, which creates fast neutrons. It is charged by special generators, which create high voltage inside the tube. As a result, fast neutrons attack active material.
Active bomb material.
Active bomb material is uranium 235. It represents a sphere with an opening into which an initiator is inserted. Once this is done, the opening is sealed by a cork made of uranium 235.
Protective casing.
The uranium sphere is encased in a protective aluminum casing, which is covered by a layer of cadmium. This significantly slows down thermal neutrons emanating from uranium 235, which can cause premature detonation.
Explosive matter.
After the layer of cadmium it is placed inside explosives that consist of porous TNT saturated with liquid oxygen; TNT is made up of bars of a specially chosen shape. The inner surface of the bars has a spherical curvature, which is the same as
this the aluminum sphere, covered in cadmium, is sealed off by a cork, on top of which the last bar of TNT is placed. Next, liquid oxygen is pumped through the opening inside a protective casing, which covers the TNT. After this the bomb is ready forCasing.
TNT is covered by a protective layer made of a light aluminum alloy. A blasting mechanism is attached on top of this casing.
Exterior casing.
An exterior casing of armored steel is installed above the blasting mechanism.
Fairing.
A fairing made of a light alloy can be installed on top of the armored casing for future installation on a rocket of the V-type.
Bomb assembly.
The sphere, which consists of metal uranium, is placed inside a protective casing, which consists of aluminum, covered in a layer of cadmium, so that the opening in the sphere coinciding with the opening is sealed off by a uranium cork. After
chain reaction Next, the detonating mechanism detonates the explosive matter, after which a shock from the explosion of the external layer of TNT mixed with liquid oxygen takes place, which is directed toward the center. This allows the uranium to reachBomb ignition.
The bomb ignition is carried out with the help of a high-voltage discharge tube. It forms a flow of neutrons, which attack the active material. When the flow of neutrons impacts upon uranium, element 93 fissions, which speeds up the creation of a
Germany. He also states that he has infor mation on a new type torpedo which is radar controlled and leave no trace in water.Ahead of this, before the explosion, the uranium sphere is irradiated with gamma-rays, the energy of which does not exceed 6 million electron volts, which many times increases its explosive qualities.
CONCLUSION.
Without doubt, the Germans are carrying out tests of a bomb of high destructive force. In the event of their successful conclusion and production of such bombs in sufficient quantities, they will have weapons capable of slowing down our advance.
Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
Lieutenant General Ilyichev
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin
” Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov
” Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov
” Nr. 4 — into archive
16 pp.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HQ CIC, USFET, Region Munich IV, Munich Sub-Regional Office, 25 April 1946. Subject: Wilhelm Voss. Declassified 2006 [NARA RG 263, Entry ZZ-18, Box 133, File Voss, Friedrich Wilhelm].
1. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS reported to this office 24 April 1946. Subject was the director of the Skoda Works and Bruenner Waffenwerke in Prague, Czechoslovakia from 1939–1945. Subject claims that he has valuable information on atom bomb research in
Goering.2. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS was born 1 July 1896 in Rostock, Mecklenburg. [...] He was one of the founders of Reichswerke Hermann Goering and in 1938 became its commercial director. In 1939 VOSS was appointed director of Skoda and Bruenner Waffenwerke by
fleeing in the direction of the American troops. PURUCKER was driving a large civilian car which contained many of the plans on the atom bomb. This car plus material fell into the hands of the Russians, and VOSS was separated from PURUCKER. VOSS at3. Subject states that the two men that were responsible for research on the most secret weapons at Skoda were SS Gruppenfuehrer Prof. KAMMLER and his deputy SS Oberfuehrer PURUCKER. On the 10 May 1945 VOSS and PURUCKER were in Schimelitz,
commanders that should have caused historians and students of the conflict to question the official line.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are literally hundreds more additional documents that say the same and similar as the ones you just read, and probably more like thousands. PS Here are a couple of provocative public statements / writings made by well known Allied high
1944] months staff officers from Washington arrived at my headquarters to give me the latest calculations concerning German progress in the development of new weapons, including as possibilities bacteriological and atomic weapons. These reports wereDwight D. Eisenhower. 1948. Crusade in Europe. Ch. 13–14, pp. 229, 258–260.
“Alarming Intelligence reports concerning the progress of the Germans in developing new long-range weapons of great destructive capacity also indicated the advisability of attacking [launching D-Day] early. From time to time during the spring [
Japanese assaults. Allied resources were searched through again and again, and strategy reconsidered in the light of the deficiencies. These conclusions seemed inescapable: France must be invaded in 1944, to shorten the war by facilitating the advanceGeneral George C. Marshall. 1 September 1945 (publicly released 10 October 1945). Third and Final Biennial Report to the Secretary of War. In George C. Marshall. 1996.
Biennial Reports of the Chief of Staff of the United States Army to the Secretary of War: 1 July 1939 – 30 June 1945. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing
Office. pp. 132, 210. [history.army.mil/html/books/070/70-57/CMH Pub 70-57.pdf ]
Victory in this global war depended on the successful execution of OVERLORD. That must not fail. Yet the Japanese could not be permitted meanwhile to entrench in their stolen empire, and China must not be allowed to fall victim to further
the Japanese in the Pacific must not be relaxed. Communications with China must be reopened. Resources were allocated accordingly. The balance was extremely delicate but we had to go ahead. [...]westward of the Soviet forces. At the same time German technological advances such as in the development of atomic explosives made it imperative that we attack before these terrible weapons could be turned against us. In addition, the pressure on
eliminated and the Atlantic Ocean crossed by ships before our factories could be brought within the range of the enemy guns. At the close ofthe German war in Europe they were just on the outer fringes of the range of fire from an enemy in Europe. GoeringBetween Germany and America in 1914 and again in 1939 stood Great Britain and the USSR, France, Poland, and the other countries of Europe. Because the technique of destruction had not progressed to its present peak, these nations had to be
the Soviet GRU and other high muckety-mucks in which he described the design details in Ivan Ilyichev's original report as "very credible". A number of modern researchers long ago reached the conclusion that the GRU reports are genuine.Someone clearly spent a good bit of time mixing fact and fiction here to make it seem as if the nazis were hyper-advanced supermen. The bit about porous TNT soaked in liquid oxygen is fantasy.
DeanThere is zero interest in Nazis being "hyper-advanced supermen". They were, however, considerably further down the road to advanced nuclear weapons than were the Allies. The top Soviet atomic scientist of that era, Igor Kurchatov, wrote a letter to
The nazis were definitely not "further down the road to advanced nuclear weapons than the Allies". That is a disingenuous statement for two reasons: First, it is obvious from history that the Allies had the weapons and the nazies did not. Secondly, thelong spiel leading up to that statement is a rehash of long disproved lies made up and spread by nazi fanboys.
Dean
On Wednesday, September 6, 2023 at 7:28:58 AM UTC-4, Dean Markley wrote:not say "all" of the most important documents (and other evidence). There were in fact various parts and pieces that leaked through the postwar western Allied clampdown on German, Japanese, and Italian work in the field, but you really had to dig deep
On Tuesday, September 5, 2023 at 4:20:12 PM UTC-4, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Friday, September 1, 2023 at 7:59:45 AM UTC-4, Dean Markley wrote:
On Wednesday, August 30, 2023 at 12:28:23 PM UTC-4, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Saturday, February 11, 2023 at 11:36:37 AM UTC-5, Keith Willshaw wrote:
On 10/02/2023 18:59, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Monday, November 1, 2021 at 1:44:57 PM UTC-4, a425couple wrote:
On 10/31/2021 9:12 AM, williamjp...@yahoo.com wrote:
On Sunday, February 14, 2021 at 2:09:44 PM UTC-5, a425couple wrote:-----------------------
Some interesting reminders here:
from
https://www.quora.com/How-close-were-Germany-and-Japan-to-developing-their-own-nuclear-weapons
Dear William,
Also from Quora:
https://www.quora.com/How-close-was-Germany-to-making-an-atomic-bomb/answer/William-Pellas
https://www.quora.com/Was-Hitler-ever-thinking-about-dropping-an-atomic-bomb-in-World-War-II/answer/William-Pellas
I'm glad you are interested in this subject.
Do you have any thoughts to share?
Yes, thank you.
Anyone who is truly interested in WWII Axis WMD development must keep the following factors in mind.
1. The great majority of the most crucial and revealing documents which describe the true extent of Axis work on WMDs, especially of the nuclear variety, were highly classified for 50 years or longer past the end of WWII. Note that I did
in the field.2. Many of the most important sites in the Axis nuclear effort fell to the Soviets at war's end. The Cold War which swiftly ensued served to hide or at least greatly obscure these locations from western observers and scholars.
3. The Cold War itself kept most western historians and public intellectuals focused on the Soviets and the looming threat of nuclear Armageddon rather than on research to better establish the true extent and postwar influence of Axis work
staff scientist, spent nearly a decade and a great deal of his own money to conduct a truly global search for primary source information about what the Germans (and to a lesser extent, Japan and Italy) were doing in terms of nuclear weapons R&D. The4. By far the most important development in WWII historiography since the end of the Cold War was published online in 2020. This was Dr. Todd Rider's immense and extremely thorough book, "Forgotten Creators". Rider, a former MIT senior
conflict, that is, in 1995 and later. That means that not one of the books you have read had any of the information in them that has since been---finally---declassified. Here are some examples.Far from being clamped down there were several books published, the
transcripts of conversations overheard by British intelligence of German
Nuclear scientists were released and the German Nuclear sites such as
Haigerloch were thoroughly investigated.
https://history.aip.org/exhibits/heisenberg/farm-hall.html
The bottom line is that typical Nazi fashion Germant had at least 3
different projects going on none of which had anything like the resources to get anywhere. In 1945 they tried to build a nuclear reactor
and were fortunate it didnt work as it had no control rods.
PS having worked in the British Nuclear Industry at Harwell and for EdF----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
in Paris I do have some knowledge of this subject.
All you have done is reiterate the conventional postwar - Cold War version of events, albeit with slightly more detail than the usual chorus.
I repeat: the great majority (though not all) of the most important documentation for a much larger and far more advanced WWII German nuclear weapons program did NOT appear in public sources until 50 years or longer after the end of the
work done in the early days of this project and also in the published sources. Lyons rather ostentatiously signs his letter as coming from the Office for Special Physical Questions of the Research Division of the German Reichspost (Amt f¨urPhilip Morrison to Robert Furman. The German Reichspost and Nuclear Research. 24 April 1944. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 170, Folder 32.60-1 GERMANY: Summary Reports (1944)]
We now have three independent pieces of evidence that the Reichspost is interested in neutron research or wishes us to think that:
1) Several years ago M. von Ardenne thanked the Reichspost minister, a man named Ohnesorge, for supporting the entrance of von Ardenne’s laboratory into work in nuclear physics.
2) In October 1943 (Naturwissenschaften, 31, p. 507) a man, otherwise unknown to us, named D. Lyons, published a mathematical letter on the slowing down of neutrons in homogeneous mixtures. The material of the letter is rather similar to much
learn about it in such a direct way as from Lyons’ note, but confirm it in the rather indirect way of (1) and (3) above. I would suggest that you formulate inquiries about the activity of the Reichspost in the Tempelhof laboratories to whoever will3) The information from Swiss sources which you showed us this week mentioned that S. Flugge has left Hahn to go to work for the Reichspost.
It will be clear to you that there is something rather odd in this affair of the Reichspost’s becoming interested in a field so very far from the radio and telephone research they have carried out in the past. It is equally strange that we
42 CS/981 Generalleutnant KITTEL (Comd. METZ and Comd. 462 Volksgren. Div.) Captd METZ 22 Nov 44-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Philip Morrison and Karl Cohen. 31 July 1944. Appraisal of Enemy Bomb Production. [NARA RG 77, Entry UD-22A, Box 168, Folder 203.11—Tech. Countermeasures + RW—1943–1944]
APPRAISAL OF ENEMY BOMB PRODUCTION
Summary
Recent evidence essentially confirms our earlier general statements on enemy bomb production. The reports now at hand lead us to conclude:
1. A German “Y” project has been underway since early 1943.
2. A D2O pile is in operation, but we do not believe that this is on production level.
3. It is implied that a separation method is operating at a production level, for it is surely improbable that the enemy will organize a utilization group without something to use.
We include a time schedule, and a technical discuss of the probable means employed.
Enemy production of devices can be as high as:
1. 1 device every 3 months—on the assumption that 30 kg of material are required per device.
2. 1 device every month—on the assumption that 10 kg of material are required per device.
In either case the first completed device could be in enemy hands now.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1118. [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 284–285] M 159—General der Panzertruppen Von THOMA (GOC German AFRIKORPS) Captd MIDDLE EAST 4 Nov
1963—Generalmajor FRANZ (Comd., 256 V.G. Div.) Captured BIRNFELD 8 Apr 45 CS/1965—Generalmajor GOERBIG (Comd., SENNE, Captured BAD GRUND 10 Apr 45Information received: 10 Jan 1945
TRANSLATION
KITTEL: (Re atom bomb). It’s a perfectly horrible thing.
THOMA: A technical man has written about it, saying the problem has been completely solved theoretically, but that the process can’t be controlled(?).
KITTEL: That’s the question. At the passing-out parade of an officer’s course the FUHRER—I ¨ sent for one of the officers personally, for they were the ones who were at METZ—
THOMA: He’s lying. There’s absolutely no such thing as the atom business.
KITTEL: Unfortunately there is.
THOMA: Then he would have used it long ago.
KITTEL: No; he isn’t using it, because the others have promised to retaliate with chemical warfare. [...]
THOMA: But there’s no such thing as an atom bomb.
KITTEL: The experiments with it are carried out on BORNHOLM; the island has been evacuated and no-one may enter or leave the place.
THOMA: What do they do there?
KITTEL: They carry out their experiments there. Apparently they’ve got another trump card up their sleeve.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C.S.D.I.C. (U.K.) S.R.G.G. 1163(C). [Recorded conversation of two German prisoners of war held in the United Kingdom. AFHRA A5415 electronic pp. 84–85] CS/1948—Generalleutnant BOINEBURG (Comd., BERGEN (HANNOVER)) Captd ALLSTADT 13 Apr 45 CS/
be fired as far as NEW YORK or elsewhere. (?)Information received: 29 Apr 1945
TRANSLATION (?)
FRANZ: I hope HIMMLER doesn’t fire V-6 or V-7. (?)
GOERBIG: Do you really think we still have something up our sleeves? (?)
FRANZ: Yes, I believe so most definitely. I mean to say it wasn’t ready; they hadn’t advanced far enough to be brought into use. But I’m certain that a lot of experiments were in progress; it is a fact that some of those projectiles could
and next time a thing like this starts it’ll be ghastly. If HIMMLER and his faithful followers turn up one day with all the patents etc., with a sample, it will not be viewed with displeasure by STALIN. There is a risk of HIMMLER betraying the V-weaponGOERBIG: Did you get that from a reliable source? (?)
FRANZ: I know that for certain. (?)
GOERBIG: With what effect? (?)
FRANZ: With a colossal explosive effect, a strong detonation which really would wipe out everything within a radius of 2 or 3 km. However, the thing isn’t ready for immediate use yet. They couldn’t make any progress, but next time they will
should be traced and questioned in detail.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edmund Tilley. Brief Operational Report on [censored] and Other Germans and Italians Connected with Project Abstract. 19 August 1947. NARA RG 319, Entry A1-134A, Box 29, Folder Operation Oberjoch:
25. Prof. Dr. NIELS [Walter Nielsch?], now said to be in the United States, was, according to [censored,] concerned with chemical and atomic problems at TUCHELER HEIDE and produced a number of atomic bombs, weighing from 1 to 5 kilograms. NIELS
in Thuringia. For the preparations of the tests the local residents are supposed to be transported away by an SS detail; the whole operation is reported to be undertaken in strictest secrecy. The explosions are supposed to take place in a wooded area.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Ivan Ilyichev. 15 November 1944. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
15 November 1944 Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source in Germany reports: “The Germans are preparing to conduct tests of a new secret weapon, which has a large destructive power. The test explosion of a bomb of unusual construction is being prepared under highest secrecy
Germans to actually carry out tests of atom bombs, about whose existence we have only incomplete, scanty information.”CONCLUSION. In the last months our source has reported more and more often about the feverish efforts of the Germans to test ever more powerful weapons and their means of delivery. Probably these experiments lead directly to an attempt of the
the explosion. Buildings and fortifications specially constructed for the tests have been destroyed.Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army Lieutenant General Ilyichev
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov Nr. 4 — into archive
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
General Ivan Ilyichev. 23 March 1945. Intelligence report to General Antonov and Joseph Stalin. Archive of the President of the Russian Federation, 93-81 (45) 37.
Peoples’ Commissariat of Defense of the USSR
Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
[2]3 March 1945
Moscow
To the Head of the Red Army General HQ
General of the Army, Comrade Antonov
Report:
Our trustworthy source from Germany reports:
“The Germans have in recent times carried out two large-capacity bomb explosions in Thuringia. The explosions took place in a forest area, under conditions of strictest secrecy. Trees fell at a distance of 500–600 meters from the center of
their position in relation to the epicenter of the explosion. The tests were carried out in a remote deserted area. The regime of secrecy at the test site was at maximum level. Entrance and exit from the territory are by special pass only. SS soldiersPrisoners of war who were near the epicenter of the explosion died, often without leaving a trace. Prisoners of war who were in the area beyond the center of the explosion have burns on their face and body, the strength of which depends on
guards with dogs. The bomb explosion was accompanied by a large explosive wave and high temperature. In addition, a massive radioactive effect was observed. The bomb is a sphere with a diameter of 130 cm.The bomb, supposedly filled with uranium 235 and weighing approximately two tons, was brought to the test site on a specially constructed truck. Dewars of liquid oxygen were delivered together with it. The bomb was permanently guarded by 20
that of the external surface of the cadmium layer. Each of the bars is supplied with one detonator or two electrical fuses.The bomb consists of:
1. High-voltage discharge tube, which is charged by special generators
2. A sphere made of metal uranium 235
3. A delay mechanism
4. Protective casing
5. Explosive substance
6. Detonating mechanism
7. Steel casing
All parts of the bomb fit inside each other.
Initiator or bomb fuse.
Consists of a special tube, which creates fast neutrons. It is charged by special generators, which create high voltage inside the tube. As a result, fast neutrons attack active material.
Active bomb material.
Active bomb material is uranium 235. It represents a sphere with an opening into which an initiator is inserted. Once this is done, the opening is sealed by a cork made of uranium 235.
Protective casing.
The uranium sphere is encased in a protective aluminum casing, which is covered by a layer of cadmium. This significantly slows down thermal neutrons emanating from uranium 235, which can cause premature detonation.
Explosive matter.
After the layer of cadmium it is placed inside explosives that consist of porous TNT saturated with liquid oxygen; TNT is made up of bars of a specially chosen shape. The inner surface of the bars has a spherical curvature, which is the same as
this the aluminum sphere, covered in cadmium, is sealed off by a cork, on top of which the last bar of TNT is placed. Next, liquid oxygen is pumped through the opening inside a protective casing, which covers the TNT. After this the bomb is ready forCasing.
TNT is covered by a protective layer made of a light aluminum alloy. A blasting mechanism is attached on top of this casing.
Exterior casing.
An exterior casing of armored steel is installed above the blasting mechanism.
Fairing.
A fairing made of a light alloy can be installed on top of the armored casing for future installation on a rocket of the V-type.
Bomb assembly.
The sphere, which consists of metal uranium, is placed inside a protective casing, which consists of aluminum, covered in a layer of cadmium, so that the opening in the sphere coinciding with the opening is sealed off by a uranium cork. After
a chain reaction Next, the detonating mechanism detonates the explosive matter, after which a shock from the explosion of the external layer of TNT mixed with liquid oxygen takes place, which is directed toward the center. This allows the uranium toBomb ignition.
The bomb ignition is carried out with the help of a high-voltage discharge tube. It forms a flow of neutrons, which attack the active material. When the flow of neutrons impacts upon uranium, element 93 fissions, which speeds up the creation of
Ahead of this, before the explosion, the uranium sphere is irradiated with gamma-rays, the energy of which does not exceed 6 million electron volts, which many times increases its explosive qualities.
CONCLUSION.
Without doubt, the Germans are carrying out tests of a bomb of high destructive force. In the event of their successful conclusion and production of such bombs in sufficient quantities, they will have weapons capable of slowing down our advance.
Germany. He also states that he has infor mation on a new type torpedo which is radar controlled and leave no trace in water.Head of Chief Intelligence Department of the Red Army
Lieutenant General Ilyichev
Typed 4 copies
Copy Nr. 1 — Comrade Stalin
” Nr. 2 — Comrade Molotov
” Nr. 3 — Comrade Antonov
” Nr. 4 — into archive
16 pp.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HQ CIC, USFET, Region Munich IV, Munich Sub-Regional Office, 25 April 1946. Subject: Wilhelm Voss. Declassified 2006 [NARA RG 263, Entry ZZ-18, Box 133, File Voss, Friedrich Wilhelm].
1. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS reported to this office 24 April 1946. Subject was the director of the Skoda Works and Bruenner Waffenwerke in Prague, Czechoslovakia from 1939–1945. Subject claims that he has valuable information on atom bomb research in
by Goering.2. Dr. Wilhelm VOSS was born 1 July 1896 in Rostock, Mecklenburg. [...] He was one of the founders of Reichswerke Hermann Goering and in 1938 became its commercial director. In 1939 VOSS was appointed director of Skoda and Bruenner Waffenwerke
fleeing in the direction of the American troops. PURUCKER was driving a large civilian car which contained many of the plans on the atom bomb. This car plus material fell into the hands of the Russians, and VOSS was separated from PURUCKER. VOSS at3. Subject states that the two men that were responsible for research on the most secret weapons at Skoda were SS Gruppenfuehrer Prof. KAMMLER and his deputy SS Oberfuehrer PURUCKER. On the 10 May 1945 VOSS and PURUCKER were in Schimelitz,
commanders that should have caused historians and students of the conflict to question the official line.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are literally hundreds more additional documents that say the same and similar as the ones you just read, and probably more like thousands. PS Here are a couple of provocative public statements / writings made by well known Allied high
[1944] months staff officers from Washington arrived at my headquarters to give me the latest calculations concerning German progress in the development of new weapons, including as possibilities bacteriological and atomic weapons. These reports wereDwight D. Eisenhower. 1948. Crusade in Europe. Ch. 13–14, pp. 229, 258–260.
“Alarming Intelligence reports concerning the progress of the Germans in developing new long-range weapons of great destructive capacity also indicated the advisability of attacking [launching D-Day] early. From time to time during the spring
Japanese assaults. Allied resources were searched through again and again, and strategy reconsidered in the light of the deficiencies. These conclusions seemed inescapable: France must be invaded in 1944, to shorten the war by facilitating the advanceGeneral George C. Marshall. 1 September 1945 (publicly released 10 October 1945). Third and Final Biennial Report to the Secretary of War. In George C. Marshall. 1996.
Biennial Reports of the Chief of Staff of the United States Army to the Secretary of War: 1 July 1939 – 30 June 1945. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing
Office. pp. 132, 210. [history.army.mil/html/books/070/70-57/CMH Pub 70-57.pdf ]
Victory in this global war depended on the successful execution of OVERLORD. That must not fail. Yet the Japanese could not be permitted meanwhile to entrench in their stolen empire, and China must not be allowed to fall victim to further
on the Japanese in the Pacific must not be relaxed. Communications with China must be reopened. Resources were allocated accordingly. The balance was extremely delicate but we had to go ahead. [...]westward of the Soviet forces. At the same time German technological advances such as in the development of atomic explosives made it imperative that we attack before these terrible weapons could be turned against us. In addition, the pressure
eliminated and the Atlantic Ocean crossed by ships before our factories could be brought within the range of the enemy guns. At the close ofthe German war in Europe they were just on the outer fringes of the range of fire from an enemy in Europe. GoeringBetween Germany and America in 1914 and again in 1939 stood Great Britain and the USSR, France, Poland, and the other countries of Europe. Because the technique of destruction had not progressed to its present peak, these nations had to be
the Soviet GRU and other high muckety-mucks in which he described the design details in Ivan Ilyichev's original report as "very credible". A number of modern researchers long ago reached the conclusion that the GRU reports are genuine.Someone clearly spent a good bit of time mixing fact and fiction here to make it seem as if the nazis were hyper-advanced supermen. The bit about porous TNT soaked in liquid oxygen is fantasy.
DeanThere is zero interest in Nazis being "hyper-advanced supermen". They were, however, considerably further down the road to advanced nuclear weapons than were the Allies. The top Soviet atomic scientist of that era, Igor Kurchatov, wrote a letter to
the long spiel leading up to that statement is a rehash of long disproved lies made up and spread by nazi fanboys.The nazis were definitely not "further down the road to advanced nuclear weapons than the Allies". That is a disingenuous statement for two reasons: First, it is obvious from history that the Allies had the weapons and the nazies did not. Secondly,
entirely legitimate primary sources I posted above (and there are many hundreds more like them, by the way) are quote, a rehash of long disproved lies made up and spread by nazi fanboys, unquote, but I'm not going to bother. The mere fact that you areDeanIt is NOT obvious, Dean-o. Which you would know if you had actually done any reading outside of Wikipedia and---perhaps---one or two popular histories written during the Cold War. I would ask how it is that you ahem, "know" that every one of the
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