Fairchild K-18 Aerial Camera with 24 inch lens
Toronto. The May 1945 Popular Mechanics has a small article on the use of the Fairchild Aerial Camera and its 24 inch lens over Tokyo. In the waning days of WW2, America was getting ready to end things in the Pacific with its historic bombing of Japan (Hiroshima and Nagasaki) with the world’s first atomic bombs (dirty bombs that exploded radioactive uranium to make a lot of heat, lesser elements, plus a lot of dangerous radiation).
Work was underway in the southwestern states to perfect the bombs while mapping and weather forecasting technology watched over Japan. George Dunbar discovered this piece of photographic history from that bellicose period (sound familiar) and shared it with me.
Now, nearly 8 decades later and far wiser about bombs, war and radiation (Three Mile Island; Chernobyl; etc), we still have demigods who haven’t learnt or refuse to learn of the terrible dangers to the world if radiation is once again cut loose – be it by accident or design.
