WWII: height of nuclear bomb drops and detonations 1945

At 08:15am, on August 6, 1945, Colonel Paul Tibbets flew his B-29 bomber named Enola Gay over Hiroshima, and at a height of 31,000 feet (9.4km) he dropped the first nuclear weapon ever used in warfare. The bomb resulted in the instant death of some 70,000 people, and up to 70,000 more by the end of the year, but it did not achieve its goal of forcing Japan into surrender. Three days later, on the morning August 9, 1945, Major Charles W. Sweeney flew his B-29 bomber named Bockscar towards his original target at Kokura, however, delays in the rendezvous with other aircraft on reconnaissance and photographing missions allowed time for clouds and smoke from nearby firebombing missions to gather, which impeded visibility. Therefore, as fuel began to run out and the likelihood of Japanese defenses arriving grew, the mission changed its target to Nagasaki. At 11:01am, at a height of 29,000 feet (8.8km), the second and last nuclear weapon ever used in warfare was dropped, instantly killing around 40,000 people, and up to 100,000 more by the year's end.