Hidden figures of the Manhattan Project: Meet the women behind the A-bomb (Part 1)

On July 16, 1945, if you had been living in Alamogordo, New Mexico, you may have witnessed a great explosion never before seen — the first successful test of an atomic bomb, a fiery mushroom cloud that seemingly sprung out of the New Mexican desert. Many of these employees were women, who worked as nurses, lab technicians, maids, secretaries, or instrument operators. Most were unaware what their work contributed to, only that it was for the war effort. But some of these women were scientists, with doctorates and specialized knowledge in physics and chemistry. Working on the Manhattan Project gave them opportunities that would have often been otherwise denied, and helped start to chip away at the many obstacles women scientists faced. But the research they conducted was unproven, highly secretive, and very dangerous. Read More…