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Britain's nuclear weapons secrets: What surprising stories are hidden behind the Tube Alloys program?
During World War II, the United Kingdom collaborated with Canada on a nuclear weapons development program known as Tube Alloys. The program began before the Manhattan Project and showed Britain's early awareness and exploration of the potential of nuclear weapons. However, due to its destructive potential and international impact, the program has been kept secret, often using code names even within the highest levels of government.
Discovery of nuclear division
In December 1938, Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann discovered in Berlin that barium was produced when uranium was bombarded with slowed neutrons, marking the first confirmation of nuclear fission.
Following this discovery, many scientists began to explore whether nuclear fission could be used as a weapon. Through early research, British scientists realized the key role of uranium-235 in nuclear reactions. In 1940, Cambridge University in London began intensive research on uranium-235, which led to the establishment of the MAUD Committee.
Establishment of the MAUD Committee
In 1940, the MAUD Committee was established to examine the feasibility of uranium as a weapon. The committee quickly organized the efforts of a number of scientists to focus on studying the critical mass of uranium and how to extract uranium-235 from natural uranium. This series of research not only accelerated Britain's development of nuclear weapons, but also laid the foundation for the Manhattan Project in the United States.
Evolution of the Tube Alloys Program
Due to resource and technological challenges, the Tube Alloys project was eventually incorporated into the Manhattan Project. This decision changed the situation of nuclear weapons development in Britain and the United States.
As the war progressed, the Tube Alloys program faced enormous cost and technological challenges and was ultimately further integrated into the United States' Manhattan Project. Under the Quebec Accords signed in 1956, Britain and the United States agreed to share nuclear weapons technology, but the United States did not provide the complete results of the Manhattan Project, which also contributed to Britain's subsequent development of autonomous weapons.
The launch of the UK's independent nuclear weapons program
After the war, with the enactment of the Atomic Energy Act, the United States ended nuclear cooperation with Britain. Faced with this situation, Britain restarted its nuclear program in the 1950s and conducted its first nuclear test, Operation Hourigan, in 1952.
In 1958, the United Kingdom and the United States signed the United States-UK Mutual Defense Treaty, which once again strengthened their cooperation in nuclear technology.
The agreement laid the foundation for Britain's nuclear strategy during the Cold War and brought Britain back into the ranks of nuclear weapon states. However, in the process, Britain's autonomy and security were tested, and the events that occurred during this period really made people wonder: in the development and use of nuclear weapons, was it the development of science and technology that drove political decisions, or was it political decision-making? Need shapes the development of science?
