Trinity (Manhattan Project)

Trinity was the codename for the first nuclear test at the climax of the Manhattan Project.

History

Prior to the test, Hungarian theoretical physicist Edward Teller was worried that the detonation would ignite all the hydrogen atoms in Earth's atmosphere and destroy the planet. He had heated arguments with Robert Oppenheimer about this concern. Oppenheimer respected Teller as a scientist but was prepared to take the risk. Teller felt that this had been a snub and stood by his theory until the moment of the detonation.

The Trinity blast took place on Monday, 16 July 1945 at 45 seconds past 5:29 am, in the Jornada del Muerto desert in New Mexico. The test was a success. The United States subsequently created the world's first atomic bombs, which were deployed against the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to end the Pacific War.

Teller was deeply embarrassed when Trinity proved his calculations wrong. His resentment led to a lasting rivalry with Oppenheimer and changed his ideology to one advocating US nuclear proliferation. Teller went on the create the hydrogen bomb.

Parallel universe

In a parallel universe, N-Space Japanese-American cultists of the Chapel of the Red Apocalypse sought to use Trinity to destroy the universe and change the outcome of World War II in the Japanese Empire's favour throughout the rest of the multiverse. Led by Imperial Lee and Lady Silk, the cult's pawn Ray Morita would apply his calculations predicting the doomsday particle at the exact moment of the detonation, essentially making Teller's theory a reality on a universal scale.

Trinity was originally scheduled to take place at the same time as N-Space. However, the Seventh Doctor manipulated his calculations to cast some doubt on the exact geometry chosen for George Kistiakowsky’s explosive lenses used to detonate the fissionable material. Trinity was delayed by a day, to Kistiakowsky's annoyance.

Lee and Silk, unaware of the change, prepared for the detonation on Monday, 16 July. They played their hand too early and nothing happened. Lee killed himself trying to escape while Silk fled back to N-Space.

The Doctor had also hoped that he could convince this universe's Teller that his calculations were wrong before the detonation took place, sparing this Earth from his nuclear proliferation programmed. The Doctor was unsuccessful in this endeavour.

Trinity finally took place on Tuesday, 17 July 1945 at 5am exactly. The Doctor, Ace, Ray Morita and Zorg observed the detonation from Zorg's ship, offering them a bird's-eye view. (PROSE: Atom Bomb Blues)