Hiroshima was the city hit by the first atomic bomb on 6 August 1945 during Japan’s surrender crisis.
The United States Army Air Forces dropped the uranium bomb Little Boy from the B-29 bomber Enola Gay. The explosion devastated much of Hiroshima, killing tens of thousands of people immediately and causing many additional deaths from injuries and radiation-related illness.
Sixteen hours later, President Harry S. Truman announced the attack and again called on Japan to surrender. Japan did not immediately accept the Allied terms. The Soviet Union declared war on Japan on 8 August, and a second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on 9 August.
Hiroshima is sometimes confused with Nagasaki because both attacks occurred within Japan’s final surrender crisis. Hiroshima was the first target, while Nagasaki was the second. The bombings remain subjects of historical and ethical debate, but the dates, cities, and bomb names are distinct.