How today's nuclear weapons compare to those used in WWII

Aug 6, 2020

An atomic bomb of the "Little Boy" type, the kind which detonated over Hiroshima, Japan, is seen in an undated photograph. Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory/Naval History and Heritage Command/Handout via REUTERS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY.

The Little Boy bomb was the equivalent of detonating 15,000 tons (13.6 million kg) of TNT. Image: via REUTERS

Simon Scarr

Deputy Head of Graphics, Thomson Reuters

Marco Hernandez

Data Visualization Developer, Reuters Graphics

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How each nuclear bomb worked in 1945. Image: Reuters Graphics

The destruction of Hiroshima. Image: Reuters Graphics

Memorial rock at the site where the second Chicago Pile reactor, CP-2, was buried in 1956. Image: Picture by the U.S. federal government, public domain.

Aerial shots of the explosion of the “Fat Man” bomb and the subsequent destruction on Nagasaki. August 9, 1945.

Aerial shots of the explosion of the “Fat Man” bomb and the subsequent destruction on Nagasaki. Image: Reuters video archive.

The U.S. nuclear test site in Nevada. Image: Sentinel 2, European Space Agency.

Nuclear tests from 1945 - 2020, 1/3 Image: Reuters Graphics

Nuclear tests from 1945 - 2020, 2/3 Image: Reuters Graphics

Nuclear tests from 1945 - 2020, 3/3 Image: Reuters Graphics

Locations of nuclear tests. Image: Reuters Graphics

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— Melissa Hanham

Global nuclear stockpile. Image: Reuters Graphics

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