Weapons And Technology During World War II
The weapons and technology advances of World War II were the foundation to important innovative things we have today. Unlike World War I, this was a new frontier. New weapons were to be made, new tactics to be taught, and more knowledge to be gained. It was the advancement in weapons and technology that led us to win the war. World War II was beginning towards the end of the Great Depression. Many people were provided with jobs after being called upon by the military for their needed skills (Mindell, Source 1). All kinds of jobs were created through this. Whether it was being a cook or a scientist, people were needed to fill them. Science and math skills were highly called upon, as well( Mindell, Source 1). Besides needing workers,
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World War II required a vast amount of industrial manufacturing capabilities (World War Weapons, Source 2). Many labs were also called upon for weapon research and development. Most of the early developed weapons were slow and unreliable. For example, the Italian M13/40 tank. As the war progressed, so did innovation. Technology widened, weapons grew faster and more durable. With this technology, we were able to excel in weapon development. New methods and ideas were quickly developed and brought to factories and labs. Many of these great advances involved communications and pilots. Pilots were now able to communicate with one another and ground control via radio telephone (Source 4). This allowed for easier communication and is still critically important. Pilots could also now fly at altitudes around 30,000 feet and fly at speeds of more than 400 miles an hour (Source 4). This was also essential because air vehicles could now fly over the enemy without being detected. Another great invention was radar. Radar( the ability to detect objects at a distance) was barely invented at the start of the war, but developed quickly(Mindell, Source 1). With radar, we were also able to track the weather. This helped with planning major events like D-Day. Radar is very important nowadays, and being innovated in various ways. Another great invention was the development of the bombsight. It was quite essential to pilots, as it allowed for "precious bombing raids". This helped increase the safety of the aircraft and it's crew, and raised the effectiveness of the bomb's ability to hit important targets with minimal damage to surrounding areas and civilians (Sources 4,9). We combined both the ability to fly fast and low to drop the bombs off either B-17 Flying Fortresses or B-24 Liberator Bombers (source 2). Besides the technology advances in aeronautics, one of the most important technology outbreaks was in the field of medicine. Scientists and doctors created a drug called penicillin. Penicillin helped prevent and treat diseases like malaria and syphilis (source 9). It was quickly mass produced and helped prevent a large amount of deaths. All throughout World War II, the government was running tests with nuclear technology.
After the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, we rapidly looked for a way to respond. The decision was to drop a 10,000 pound atomic bomb named "little boy" on the city of Hiroshima, Japan.
This nuclear weapon was a success and killed around 140,000 people. Eight days later, we dropped another bomb (code named "fat man") on the costal city of Nagasaki, Japan. It killed about 80,000 people (sources 2 and 9). This made us the first country to use a nuclear weapon in war. It was rumored that we possibly ignited the Cold War through this action (source 9). This was pretty much the ending to World War II. Without this kind of technology, we may have had a different response plan. There was a great amount of strategy used in World War II. Much of it was required to use the great weapons we had. One important thing technology helped developed was computer like devices to bypass Nazi Enigma codes (source 1). We also developed a nutrition program and conducted studies to identify research and other important data. Soldier's rations were carefully formulated in labs before being sent out. The D-Ration bar was widly used for emergency ration, as it provided soldiers with around 1,800 calories.It was small things like these that benefited us ( Source
1). Many countries had different ways of creating a military and supplying them for war. The U.S. used various ways to recruit men, and many young men saw it as a great way to serve their country. The U.S made sure that all of our men were freshly trained and prepared with fresh weapons (now semi-automatic guns) for war (source 3). However, Germany did not do this, nor anything close to it. If they had used their mass production = mass destruction (used in Holocaust, where over 11 million killed) method in war, we may not have won this war. The Soviet Union also had a notable method. They would bring in troop after troop, as soon as one failed, another went in. This may have been a successful plan, but they ended the war with the highest death toll, because of it( sources 2 and 1). There were many different ways of attack. ADD PINK NOTECARD. Some countries had stronger tiers, as well as weaknesses. Japan, for example, attacked mainly through strategic air raids (one of which was the attack on Pearl Harbor)(Source 3). During these raids, they would drop hundreds of bombs and tinfoil (to jam enemy radar) (source 1). The Japanese also had pilots called "kamikazes" who made deliberate suicidal crashes into important enemy targets (source3,4). The U.S however, had a different approach. We used the "thach weave" method where two fighters would cover one another from attack from the rear (source 4). However, Japan wasn't the only country with a strong air warfare. Germany and Soviet Union also played a large tactical role in the ir. American and British allied forces quickly learned how to defend themselves against attacks like these. We employed a number of heavily armed fighter-bombs in the Pacific and Europe to help, as well. While this action was happening in the air, we were also at war in the ocean. The U.S fleet of sea vessels was very fine. We sank more than 5,000,000 tons of shipping cargo and over 6,000,000 tons of Japanese warships ( source 2). However, we were not the only country with a strong naval fleet. Germany was able to dominate in the sea because of their submarines (also called u-boats) that took down many people in suspiciously . They used the "wolfpack" method to attack. With this, they would make coordinated assaults on cargo and rivals ships. Towards the end of the war, Germany introduced homing torpedoes that were guided by the sound of the rival ship's propellers. The Japanese also had one of the most successful torpedoes (named "long lance"), which sank four cruisers at the Battle of Savo Island in 1942. With developed weapons like these, we were able to defend ourselves well. Ground Battle was also a key element to winning the war. We were able to advance in artillery, mainly because of our technology development. These advances included included easier mobility adaptations with weapons like mounted guns and hand held rocket launchers. The Bazooka in particular, was well favored for destroying vehicles. However, larger rockets like the German V-2 missile were used for long range artillery action(source 1). These popular weapons were used to destroy vehicles like the Soviet T-34 Tank. In fact, it was so well designed that the Germans even copied the design to build their version, "The Panther". Another important tactic we developed was the ability to use paratroopers and gliders. "By 1934, U.S Marines had developed methods for landing troops and equipment on strongly defended shores "(source 3). This allowed for us to have strategy to amphibious assaults. If we had not developed strategies on how to complete strategies on how to complete tasks like these, than the invasion of the Normandy beaches that led the Germans to surrender against us. This event is also known as D-Day(Source 2). This war wouldn't have been the same, if we did not have the weapons we did. One example of this would be the number of deaths. We had 291,509 soldiers die and 670,846 were wounded ( Source $). This might seem like an increase compared to World War I ( ****** deaths and ***** wounded), but this is because this was totally different war. Around 20 years had passed, so more countries, more people, and more technology were introduced. Germany ended the war with the highest death toll, including 4,250,000 soldier deaths and around 11,000,000 civilian deaths ( probably due to Holocaust)(source 2). In conclusion, World War II led to the development of many great technologies and items. Many of these being important things we use today. Things like medicine, weapons, electronics, and much more. World War II was so vastly different because of the new countries, new technologies, and simply a new era.
World War II required a vast amount of industrial manufacturing capabilities (World War Weapons, Source 2). Many labs were also called upon for weapon research and development. Most of the early developed weapons were slow and unreliable. For example, the Italian M13/40 tank. As the war progressed, so did innovation. Technology widened, weapons grew faster and more durable. With this technology, we were able to excel in weapon development. New methods and ideas were quickly developed and brought to factories and labs. Many of these great advances involved communications and pilots. Pilots were now able to communicate with one another and ground control via radio telephone (Source 4). This allowed for easier communication and is still critically important. Pilots could also now fly at altitudes around 30,000 feet and fly at speeds of more than 400 miles an hour (Source 4). This was also essential because air vehicles could now fly over the enemy without being detected. Another great invention was radar. Radar( the ability to detect objects at a distance) was barely invented at the start of the war, but developed quickly(Mindell, Source 1). With radar, we were also able to track the weather. This helped with planning major events like D-Day. Radar is very important nowadays, and being innovated in various ways. Another great invention was the development of the bombsight. It was quite essential to pilots, as it allowed for "precious bombing raids". This helped increase the safety of the aircraft and it's crew, and raised the effectiveness of the bomb's ability to hit important targets with minimal damage to surrounding areas and civilians (Sources 4,9). We combined both the ability to fly fast and low to drop the bombs off either B-17 Flying Fortresses or B-24 Liberator Bombers (source 2). Besides the technology advances in aeronautics, one of the most important technology outbreaks was in the field of medicine. Scientists and doctors created a drug called penicillin. Penicillin helped prevent and treat diseases like malaria and syphilis (source 9). It was quickly mass produced and helped prevent a large amount of deaths. All throughout World War II, the government was running tests with nuclear technology.
After the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, we rapidly looked for a way to respond. The decision was to drop a 10,000 pound atomic bomb named "little boy" on the city of Hiroshima, Japan.
This nuclear weapon was a success and killed around 140,000 people. Eight days later, we dropped another bomb (code named "fat man") on the costal city of Nagasaki, Japan. It killed about 80,000 people (sources 2 and 9). This made us the first country to use a nuclear weapon in war. It was rumored that we possibly ignited the Cold War through this action (source 9). This was pretty much the ending to World War II. Without this kind of technology, we may have had a different response plan. There was a great amount of strategy used in World War II. Much of it was required to use the great weapons we had. One important thing technology helped developed was computer like devices to bypass Nazi Enigma codes (source 1). We also developed a nutrition program and conducted studies to identify research and other important data. Soldier's rations were carefully formulated in labs before being sent out. The D-Ration bar was widly used for emergency ration, as it provided soldiers with around 1,800 calories.It was small things like these that benefited us ( Source
1). Many countries had different ways of creating a military and supplying them for war. The U.S. used various ways to recruit men, and many young men saw it as a great way to serve their country. The U.S made sure that all of our men were freshly trained and prepared with fresh weapons (now semi-automatic guns) for war (source 3). However, Germany did not do this, nor anything close to it. If they had used their mass production = mass destruction (used in Holocaust, where over 11 million killed) method in war, we may not have won this war. The Soviet Union also had a notable method. They would bring in troop after troop, as soon as one failed, another went in. This may have been a successful plan, but they ended the war with the highest death toll, because of it( sources 2 and 1). There were many different ways of attack. ADD PINK NOTECARD. Some countries had stronger tiers, as well as weaknesses. Japan, for example, attacked mainly through strategic air raids (one of which was the attack on Pearl Harbor)(Source 3). During these raids, they would drop hundreds of bombs and tinfoil (to jam enemy radar) (source 1). The Japanese also had pilots called "kamikazes" who made deliberate suicidal crashes into important enemy targets (source3,4). The U.S however, had a different approach. We used the "thach weave" method where two fighters would cover one another from attack from the rear (source 4). However, Japan wasn't the only country with a strong air warfare. Germany and Soviet Union also played a large tactical role in the ir. American and British allied forces quickly learned how to defend themselves against attacks like these. We employed a number of heavily armed fighter-bombs in the Pacific and Europe to help, as well. While this action was happening in the air, we were also at war in the ocean. The U.S fleet of sea vessels was very fine. We sank more than 5,000,000 tons of shipping cargo and over 6,000,000 tons of Japanese warships ( source 2). However, we were not the only country with a strong naval fleet. Germany was able to dominate in the sea because of their submarines (also called u-boats) that took down many people in suspiciously . They used the "wolfpack" method to attack. With this, they would make coordinated assaults on cargo and rivals ships. Towards the end of the war, Germany introduced homing torpedoes that were guided by the sound of the rival ship's propellers. The Japanese also had one of the most successful torpedoes (named "long lance"), which sank four cruisers at the Battle of Savo Island in 1942. With developed weapons like these, we were able to defend ourselves well. Ground Battle was also a key element to winning the war. We were able to advance in artillery, mainly because of our technology development. These advances included included easier mobility adaptations with weapons like mounted guns and hand held rocket launchers. The Bazooka in particular, was well favored for destroying vehicles. However, larger rockets like the German V-2 missile were used for long range artillery action(source 1). These popular weapons were used to destroy vehicles like the Soviet T-34 Tank. In fact, it was so well designed that the Germans even copied the design to build their version, "The Panther". Another important tactic we developed was the ability to use paratroopers and gliders. "By 1934, U.S Marines had developed methods for landing troops and equipment on strongly defended shores "(source 3). This allowed for us to have strategy to amphibious assaults. If we had not developed strategies on how to complete strategies on how to complete tasks like these, than the invasion of the Normandy beaches that led the Germans to surrender against us. This event is also known as D-Day(Source 2). This war wouldn't have been the same, if we did not have the weapons we did. One example of this would be the number of deaths. We had 291,509 soldiers die and 670,846 were wounded ( Source $). This might seem like an increase compared to World War I ( ****** deaths and ***** wounded), but this is because this was totally different war. Around 20 years had passed, so more countries, more people, and more technology were introduced. Germany ended the war with the highest death toll, including 4,250,000 soldier deaths and around 11,000,000 civilian deaths ( probably due to Holocaust)(source 2). In conclusion, World War II led to the development of many great technologies and items. Many of these being important things we use today. Things like medicine, weapons, electronics, and much more. World War II was so vastly different because of the new countries, new technologies, and simply a new era.