"I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds"

Trinity

64 years ago today, the first nuclear explosion occurred at the White Sands Proving ground near Alamogordo.

The result of 3 years of work, by countless people, and incredible expense, this explosion ushered in a new era of warfare.

The equivalent of 20,000 tons of TNT, in a package that weighed about 10,000 pounds (5 tons). Total destruction in a package that could be carried in a single bomber.

Not bad for a bunch of scientists that had fled Hitler's "final solution"

The scientists had to consider the possibility that the resulting heat would ignite the hydrogen and oxygen in the immediate area and incinerate all the observers.

But what the hell, they pulled the switch anyway....

Luckily, they were wrong, and nothing of the sort happened.

Wonder how long it will be until we have another explosion, initiated by some folks who dislike the US and its culture?

After all, you cannot put the Genie back in the bottle, and there is no real defense against such an occurrence.