Planned upgrades for NUKEMAP include enhanced casualty calculations, humanitarian impact assessments, and a complete UI overhaul to improve functionality and reduce costs.
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Alex Wellerstein is a historian specializing in nuclear secrecy, teaching at Stevens Institute, and author of 'Restricted Data'.
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The blog post discusses the production of fissile materials, specifically enriched uranium and plutonium, during the Manhattan Project. It highlights the historical significance of this data in understanding the scheduling of atom...
The new book explores Harry Truman's controversial role in atomic policy, drawing on extensive research and new interpretations of historical events.
5.1News and updates
2025-09-29 • update research nuclear history books paris
The author provides updates on their activities, including the launch of a new book titled 'The Most Awful Responsibility: Truman and the Secret Struggle for Control of the Atomic Age,' set for release in December 2025. The book w...
The author discusses a graphic from Sandia National Laboratories that appears to be a cutaway of a compact thermonuclear weapon design, used as a logo for a software package. The author explores various possibilities for why this ...
0Announcing DOOMSDAY MACHINES
2024-07-12 •
The author has launched a new blog called Doomsday Machines, which will explore the post-apocalyptic imagination from different perspectives. The blog will include discussions of post-apocalyptic media, documents on how government...
0Henry Stimson didn’t go to Kyoto on his honeymoon
2023-07-24 •
The text discusses the myth that Henry Stimson saved Kyoto from bombing during World War II because he honeymooned there. The author refutes this claim by providing evidence from Stimson's diaries and biographies. The text also de...
The author reflects on his relationship with Daniel Ellsberg, his decision to write about Ellsberg's book after his death, and the content of the book itself. He discusses Ellsberg's motivation for writing the book, his memory and...
0Oppenheimer: Vacated but not Vindicated
2022-12-21 •
The Department of Energy vacated the Atomic Energy Commission decision that stripped J. Robert Oppenheimer of his security clearance in 1954. The DOE's conclusion was that the AEC's decision could be vacated because the AEC did no...
The post discusses the claim that Japan offered to surrender before the atomic bombs were dropped in August 1945. It examines the evidence and concludes that even if the claim is true, it wouldn't constitute a real 'offer to surre...
The text discusses the argument that the Japanese offered to surrender before Hiroshima, and the author argues that this is not very compelling. It explores the attempts made by the Japanese to see if the Soviet Union would serve ...
0NUKEMAP and the Ukraine–Russia war (so far)
2022-04-09 •
The author reflects on the usage stats of NUKEMAP, which decreased after the Trump presidency. However, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia led to a significant increase in NUKEMAP usage, causing server issues. The author also discu...
010 years of NUKEMAP
2022-02-03 •
The author reflects on the 10th anniversary of NUKEMAP, discussing the impact it has had, the changes over time, and future plans for the site. They also mention the usage statistics and the most popular yields of weapons that peo...
0Surely You’re Joking, Comrade Beria!
2021-11-19 •
The text discusses the digitization of Russian sources by Rosatom, the Russian nuclear agency, and the availability of Soviet nuclear history to scholars. It also delves into the 'Atomic Fun' section of the Soviet atomic bomb proj...