Hanford’s role in the atomic age remembered 80 years after Nagasaki

RICHLAND, Wash. – As the world reflects on the 80th anniversary of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, the connection between Nagasaki and Hanford remains significant.

Richland, Washington, played a crucial role during World War II as part of the Manhattan Project, a government operation that brought together some of the brightest minds to control nuclear energy.

Becky Burghart from the Manhattan Project National Historic Park shared insights about the history. “This was a brand new weapon… brand new type of weapon… Nagasaki and Hanford are forever in the history book,” said Burghart.

Richland was developed to house workers of the Manhattan Project, existing in secrecy while scientists at Hanford produced the plutonium used in the bomb, nicknamed “Fat-Man,” which was dropped on