On August 29, 1949, the first Soviet test bomb, dubbed “First Lightning,” exploded in the deserts of Kazakhstan. This startling event was not simply a technical triumph that confirmed the ability of the Soviet Union to build nuclear bombs during a period when the United States held a broadcast monopoly. It was also an international event that marked the beginning of an arms race that would …
Red Cloud at Dawn depicts the end of the United States' atomic bomb monopoly after the Soviet Union successfully detonated its first atomic bomb in 1949. Michael D. Gordin traces the geopolitical dynamics between Truman and Stalin, the developments in nuclear intelligence, and the global impact of the birth of the nuclear arms competition era. The book combines political history, diplomacy, and…