On July 16, 1945, the first atomic bomb was detonated at Alamogordo, New Mexico. Less than a month later, on August 6, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, killing more than 100,000 people.

Although The significance of the famous "mushroom cloud" has been downplayed or even portrayed as comical, the potential damage by fission power is no laughing matter. Fission-based weapons have already killed many people, and still have the potential for more destruction. An example of the dangers of fission is the famous Chernobyl incident. On April 26, 1986, the carbon control rods in the Chernobyl fission reactor near the town of Chernobyl in the former USSR caught on fire and caused an explosion in the reactor. A radioactive cloud spread across northern Europe and even parts of England. Russian authorities reported 31 deaths from the incident. Over 100,000 citizens were evacuated from the area. The incident pointed out to the world the dangers of fission power plants.

Map of the Ukraine	Nuclear fallout from the Chernobyl meltdown	The actual reactor plant at Chernobyl
Map courtesy Friends and Partners; Chernobyl photos courtesy of Keith Power

The Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall before the atomic bomb hit the city	The same building after the bomb
Above images courtesy of Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation More photos of Hiroshima before and after the bombing