How atomic bombs work and why Manhattan Project scientists designed two types of bombs during WWII

• Atomic bombs work via a process called nuclear fission that involves atom splitting.
• Shortly after scientists discovered nuclear fission, the possibility of a bomb was quickly realized.
• Albert Einstein didn't make the first atomic bombs, but his famous equation explains how they work.

With its depiction of the first atomic bomb explosion, the new film, "Oppenheimer," highlights the massive destructive power of these early nuclear weapons.