How did the bombing of Nagasaki differ from the bombing of Hiroshima?

The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki differed significantly in their design, power, and the resulting impact on the cities.

Technical Differences

• Bomb Design: The bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Little Boy, was a gun-assembly fission bomb using uranium. In contrast, the Nagasaki bomb, Fat Man, was an implosion-type fission bomb utilizing plutonium.12
• Explosive Yield: Fat Man was more powerful, with an explosive force equivalent to 21,000 tons of TNT, compared to the 15,000-ton yield of Little Boy.12

Impact and Terrain

While Fat Man was more powerful, the destruction in Nagasaki was more contained than in Hiroshima due to the city's irregular, mountainous terrain, which shielded parts of the city from the blast. Hiroshima, being more compact, suffered more widespread devastation; approximately 4.4 square miles were burned out, whereas Nagasaki saw about 1.8 square miles devastated.345

Timeline and Casualties

Hiroshima was bombed first on August 6, 1945, resulting in over 100,000 deaths by the end of the year. Nagasaki was bombed three days later, on August 9, resulting in approximately 70,000 deaths by the end of the year.154