J. Robert Oppenheimer was one of the most influential and controversial figures in the history of science. He is widely known as the “father of the atomic bomb” for his role in leading the Manhattan Project, the secret U.S. program that developed the first nuclear weapons during World War II. He was also a brilliant theoretical physicist who made significant contributions to quantum mechanics, nuclear physics, cosmology, and other fields. However, his life and career were not without challenges and controversies. He faced political persecution, moral dilemmas, and personal tragedies. He also suffered from a chronic illness that eventually claimed his life. In this article, we will explore how J. Robert Oppenheimer died from throat cancer in 1967, and what factors may have contributed to his disease.
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Early Life and Smoking Habit
J. Robert Oppenheimer was born on April 22, 1904, in New York City, to a wealthy Jewish family. He was a prodigy who excelled in various subjects, especially science and languages. He graduated from Harvard University with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry in 1925, and then pursued his doctoral studies in physics at the University of Göttingen in Germany, where he worked under Max Born, one of the founders of quantum mechanics. He received his PhD in 1927, and then conducted research at various institutions in Europe and the U.S.
One of the habits that Oppenheimer developed during his early years was smoking. He was said to have been a chain smoker since his youth, a habit that was common among intellectuals and scientists at the time. Smoking was not yet widely recognized as a health hazard, and many people believed that it had positive effects on the brain and nerves. Oppenheimer himself once remarked that “smoking is one of the few ways of remaining alive.” However, smoking also had negative consequences for his health. He contracted tuberculosis in 1936, which forced him to take a leave of absence from his teaching position at the University of California, Berkeley. He recovered after spending several months at a sanatorium in New Mexico, where he fell in love with the landscape and culture of the Southwest.
Manhattan Project and Atomic Bomb
In 1942, Oppenheimer was recruited by the U.S. government to join the Manhattan Project, the top-secret effort to develop an atomic bomb before Nazi Germany or Japan could do so. He was appointed as the director of the Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico, where he oversaw the scientific and technical aspects of the project. He assembled a team of some of the best physicists in the world, including Enrico Fermi, Niels Bohr, Richard Feynman, Edward Teller, Hans Bethe, and many others. He also collaborated with military leaders such as General Leslie Groves, who was in charge of the overall administration and security of the project.
Oppenheimer faced many challenges and difficulties during his tenure as the director of Los Alamos. He had to deal with complex scientific problems, logistical issues, personnel conflicts, security threats, ethical dilemmas, and personal stress. He also had to cope with the death of his brother Frank, who was also a physicist and a member of the Manhattan Project. Frank died in a plane crash in 1945 while returning from a trip to Washington D.C.
Despite all these obstacles, Oppenheimer succeeded in leading the Manhattan Project to its ultimate goal: creating the first atomic bomb. On July 16, 1945, he witnessed the first test of the bomb at Trinity Site near Alamogordo, New Mexico. The explosion was equivalent to about 20 kilotons of TNT, creating a mushroom cloud that rose more than seven miles into the air. Oppenheimer later recalled that he was overwhelmed by mixed emotions at that moment. He quoted a verse from the Hindu scripture Bhagavad Gita: “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” He also said that he felt “an extraordinary elation and a very profound relief.”
A few weeks later, on August 6 and 9, 1945, two atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan by U.S. planes. The bombs killed more than 200,000 people instantly or later from radiation exposure and injuries. They also forced Japan to surrender unconditionally on August 15, ending World War II.
Postwar Career and Controversy
After the war ended, Oppenheimer became one of the most prominent and influential figures in American science and politics. He was widely hailed as a hero and a genius for his role in creating the atomic bomb. He received many honors and awards, including the Medal for Merit from President Harry Truman in 1946 and the Enrico Fermi Award from President John F. Kennedy in 1963. He also became the director of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, where he continued his research and teaching in physics and other fields.
However, Oppenheimer also faced criticism and controversy for his views and actions regarding the atomic bomb and nuclear weapons in general. He was one of the first to advocate for international control and regulation of nuclear energy and weapons, as well as for the peaceful use of atomic power. He also opposed the development of the hydrogen bomb, a more powerful and destructive weapon than the atomic bomb, which he considered to be morally wrong and strategically unnecessary. He also expressed remorse and regret for his involvement in the Manhattan Project, saying that “we have made a thing, a most terrible weapon, that has altered abruptly and profoundly the nature of the world … we have made a thing that, by all the standards of the world we grew up in, is an evil thing.”
These views and statements made Oppenheimer a target of suspicion and hostility from some political and military leaders, especially during the Cold War era, when the U.S. and the Soviet Union were engaged in a nuclear arms race. He was also accused of having communist sympathies and associations, based on his past involvement with leftist groups and individuals, some of whom were later revealed to be Soviet spies. In 1954, he was subjected to a security hearing by the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), which revoked his security clearance and effectively ended his role in government affairs. The hearing was widely seen as a political witch-hunt and a violation of Oppenheimer’s civil rights. Many of his colleagues and friends defended him and protested against the decision, but to no avail.
Illness and Death
The loss of his security clearance and reputation was a devastating blow to Oppenheimer’s career and morale. He became depressed and isolated, feeling betrayed and abandoned by his country and his peers. He also suffered from various physical ailments, including chronic coughing, bleeding gums, ulcers, insomnia, and weight loss. In late 1965, he was diagnosed with throat cancer, most likely caused by his lifelong smoking habit. He underwent surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy, but none of these treatments were effective. He gradually lost his ability to speak and swallow, and fell into a coma before dying on February 18, 1967, at his home in Princeton. He was 62 years old.
Oppenheimer’s funeral was attended by more than 600 people, including many of his scientific, political, and military associates. He was cremated and his ashes were scattered over the Jemez Mountains in New Mexico, near Los Alamos and Trinity Site. His legacy remains controversial and complex, as he is both admired and criticized for his achievements and actions. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest physicists of the 20th century, as well as one of the most influential figures in the history of science and technology.
