Delay the use of the atomic bomb

[bytor]

Here's a challenge for you:

Delay the first use of an atomic bomb in war for as long as possible with the smallest, most recent point of divergence as possible.

Also, since public perception on nuclear power generation was strongly coloured by the fears of a nuclear holocaust, bonus points if bombs are delayed long enough that NPG is not so undeservedly tarnished and becomes common place such that when the first use of an atomic bomb does happen, society's reaction is more along the lines of "blame the tool, blame the user". Can you get a pro-NPG Greenpeace?

[MinnesotaNationalist]

for the most recent point of divergence: Have Trinity and Fat man just fail to go off (whether it's a failure in design or just a really bad fluke), America declares that Nuclear weapons were unfeasible and calls off the Manhattan project. How long this holds off nuclear weapons, I don't know

[punkrockbowler805]

Hmm....how about the tests fail...but Soviet spies already sent enough back for the Soviets to get their own made by the early sixties

[Krall]

Assuming you mean the actual use, rather than the development, of atomic weapons then you could have the USA offer Japan a conditional surrender whereby the Emperor's position is maintained, so they'd surrender without the USA using its atomic weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Assuming the rest of history goes roughly as OTL, that could delay the use of atomic weapons indefinitely.

[deltaforce]

May 16, 2016 15:50:08 GMT bytor said:

Here's a challenge for you:

Delay the first use of an atomic bomb in war for as long as possible with the smallest, most recent point of divergence as possible.

Also, since public perception on nuclear power generation was strongly coloured by the fears of a nuclear holocaust, bonus points if bombs are delayed long enough that NPG is not so undeservedly tarnished and becomes common place such that when the first use of an atomic bomb does happen, society's reaction is more along the lines of "blame the tool, blame the user". Can you get a pro-NPG Greenpeace?

If you're interested in Manhattan Project delays I can come up with quite a few.

As for a pro-nuclear Greenpeace, that might be difficult due to the fact that the group was established to protest nuclear testing in Amchitka, Alaska and spent most of its early years protesting nuclear testing in general. The Sierra Club could be favorable towards nuclear power if it views it as a way to reduce the growth of hydropower, as it was officially neutral on nuclear power until the late 1960s.