
The Neutron's Long Shadow
Legacies of Nuclear Explosives Production in the Manhattan Project
Martin Miller(Author)
Schiffer Publishing Ltd
Published on 28. February 2017
Book
Hardback
208 pages
978-0-7643-5237-9 (ISBN)
Description
A look at the disappearing, nuclear-explosive production plants created during and after the Manhattan Project.
The intellectual adventure of developing the atomic bomb at Los Alamos has been well documented, but the fact is that 90% of the Manhattan Project expenditures went to produce the exotic nuclear explosive materials required.
That is the story told here, a story of the brilliant harnessing of American industry to build a coordinated network of huge production plants using technology that was being developed even as the plants themselves were rising. It's the story of multiple, complex production methods being pursued simultaneously without knowing any of them would ultimately work, a story of daring gambles and their ultimate redemption. It's the story of the frantic building of subsequent, larger plants that were worked to the limits of their safe operation during the Cold War arms race.
This is a story told by the author in historical narrative and new high-resolution photographs of fast-disappearing relics.
The intellectual adventure of developing the atomic bomb at Los Alamos has been well documented, but the fact is that 90% of the Manhattan Project expenditures went to produce the exotic nuclear explosive materials required.
That is the story told here, a story of the brilliant harnessing of American industry to build a coordinated network of huge production plants using technology that was being developed even as the plants themselves were rising. It's the story of multiple, complex production methods being pursued simultaneously without knowing any of them would ultimately work, a story of daring gambles and their ultimate redemption. It's the story of the frantic building of subsequent, larger plants that were worked to the limits of their safe operation during the Cold War arms race.
This is a story told by the author in historical narrative and new high-resolution photographs of fast-disappearing relics.
Reviews / Votes
In this comprehensive and definitive work, Martin Miller reveals the massive, brooding machinery behind the apocalyptic weapons of the Atomic Age. Much that is revealed here is gone-dismantled and buried away-making Miller's haunting photographs a final, Ozymandian memorial. -- Richard Rhodes, author of The Making of the Atomic Bomb "A great addition to the literature on the Manhattan Project." -- Cindy Kelly, president of the Atomic Heritage Foundation "Deserves a prominent place among books about the atomic bomb." -- Robert S. Norris, Author of Racing for the Bomb "The first book to accurately depict the role of the production plants in Hanford and Oak Ridge." -- D. Ray Smith, Y-12 HistorianMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Atglen
United States
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Illustrations
193 b/w photos
Dimensions
Height: 306 mm
Width: 236 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
1527 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-7643-5237-9 (9780764352379)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Martin Miller has been doing serious high-resolution photography since 1970. As a former research physicist, Miller brings a distinctive point of view to creating images of this quintessentially scientific subject. His photographic work has also received numerous international awards.