Weapons of Mass Destruction

Although the term, WMD, has become a part of our daily lexicon, it remains very much an abstraction for most of us. This series of images offers a retrospective look at some of these weapons. Most of my subjects are drawn from the Cold War period during which there was a very real threat to the survival of civilization itself. The last sixty years has seen a frenzied tango between strategy and technology that has left us with the chilling array of doomsday machines seen here. Photographed by Martin Miller.

“The Gadget” (Trinity Atomic Bomb) 1945

B-2 Strategic Bomber 1989

Midgetman ICBM Hardened Mobile Launcher1988

B-1B Strategic Bomber 1986

“Little Boy” (Hiroshima Atomic Bomb) 1945

Inertial Guidance Module, Peacekeeper (MX) ICBM 1986

USS Lewis and Clark Ballistic Missile Submarine 1965

Atlas-D ICBM 1959

M65 280mm Atomic Cannon 1951

B-52 Strategic Bomber 1955

Mk-6 Atomic Bomb 1951

B-47 Strategic Bomber 1951

Mk-17 Thermonuclear Bomb 1954

German 128mm Flak 40 Zwilling Guns 1942

“Bockscar” (Nagasaki B-29 Bomber) 1945

Canadian-Made Sherman M4A1 “Grizzly Bear” Tank 1943

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