Summary of Target committee Meetings on 10 and 11 May 1945

This is a formerly top secret document that has been declassified. Although it discusses a number of items related to the atomic bomb, I will only comment on a few things.

The report covers various technical aspects of the dropping of the bomb, and includes some material on what to do if the plane has to return to the base with the bomb still on it.

Kyoto was considered a possible target. “This target is an urban industrial area with a population of 1,000,000. It is the former capital of Japan, and many people and industries are now being moved there as other areas are being destroyed. From the psychological point of view there is the advantage that Kyoto is an intellectual center for Japan and the people there are more apt to appreciate the significance of such a weapon as the gadget.” The gadget, of course, was the atomic bomb.

Hiroshima: “This is an important army depot and port of embarkation in the middle of an urban industrial area. It is a good radar target and it is such a size that a large part of the city could be extensively damaged. There are adjacent hills which are likely to produce a focusing effect which would considerably increase the blast damage. Due to rivers it is not a good incendiary target.”

Yokohama: The target is an important urban industrial area which has so far been untouched. Industrial activities include aircraft manufacture, machine tools, docks, electrical equipment and oil refineries. As the damage to Tokyo has increased additional industries have moved to Yokohama. It has the disadvantage of the most important target areas being separated by a large body of water and of being in the heaviest anti-aircraft concentration in Japan. For us it has the advantage as an alternative target for use in case of bad weather of being rather far removed from the other targets considered.”

Kokura Arsenal: “This is one of the largest arsenals in Japan and is surrounded by urban industrial structures. The arsenal is important for light ordinance, anti-aircraft and beach head defense materials. The dimensions of the arsenal are 4100' x 2000'. The dimensions are such that if the bomb were properly placed full advantage could be taken of the higher pressures immediately underneath the bomb for destroying the more solid structures and at the same time considerable blast damage could be done to more feeble structures further away.”

Niigata: “This is a port of embarkation on the N.W. Coast of Honshu. Its importance is increasing as other ports are damaged. Machine tool industries are located there and it is a potential center for industrial dispersion. It has oil refineries and storage.”

The Emperor's palace: “The possibility of bombing the Emperor's palace as discussed. It was agreed that we should not recommend it but that any action for this bombing should come from authorities on military policy. It was agreed that we should obtain information from which we could determine the effectiveness of our weapon against this target.”

The report then noted that the top four choices for bombing were Kyoto, Hiroshima, Yokohama, and Kokura Arsenal.

The report also considered psychological effects. “It was agreed that psychological factors in the target selection were of great importance. Two aspects of this are (1)obtaining the greatest psychological effect against Japan and (2) Making the initial use sufficiently spectacular for the importance of the weapon to be internationally recognized when publicity on it is released.

”In this respect Kyoto has the advantage of the peoplebeing more highly intelligent and hence better able to appreciate the significance of the weapon. Hiroshima has the advantage of being such a siae and with possible focusing from nearby mountains that a large fraction of the city may be destroyed. The Emperor's palace in Tokyo has a greater fame than any other target but is of least strategic value.”

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