Importance of Nagasaki

Nagasaki, unlike Hiroshima, was not untouched by conventional bombings from the U.S. It was, however, a center for the heavy industry the Japanese war effort needed, making it a suitable target when the bombing of Hiroshima failed to end the war. Nagasaki, however, was even less fortunate than the first A-bomb target, as the bombing of August 9 was originally set to hit Kokura, only to have the plan change when conditions hindered visibility. The less-than-perfect conditions – the bombing was only carried out due to a break in cloud coverage – and hasty nature of the pilot’s decision meant that the bomb did not fall precisely on target, but its damage was still catastrophic, thanks to Fat Man’s larger payload than Little Boy’s: anywhere from 39,000 to 80,000 died the day of the blast, and anywhere from 129,000 to 246,000 ultimately died from its effects.