''Hibakujumoku'' ( ja, 被爆樹木; also called survivor tree or A-bombed tree in English) is a Japanese term for a tree that survived the

atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki The United States detonated two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August 1945, respectively. The two bombings killed between 129,000 and 226,000 people, most of whom were civilians, and remain the onl ...

in 1945. The term is from ja, 被爆, hibaku, bombed, A-bombed, nuked and ja, 樹木, jumoku, trees, woods.

Damage

The heat emitted by the explosion in Hiroshima within the first three seconds at a distance of three kilometres from the hypocenter was about 40 times greater than that from the Sun. The initial

radiation In physics, radiation is the emission or transmission of energy in the form of waves or particles through space or through a material medium. This includes: * ''electromagnetic radiation'', such as radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visi ...

level at the hypocenter was approximately 240 Gy. According to ''Hiroshima and Nagasaki: The Physical, Medical, and Social Effects of the Atomic Bombings'', plants suffered damage only in the portions exposed above ground, while portions underground were not directly damaged.

Regeneration

The rate of regeneration differed by species. Active regeneration was shown by broad-leaved trees. Approximately 170 trees that grew in Hiroshima in 2011 had actually been there prior to the bombing. The oleander was designated the official flower of Hiroshima for its remarkable vitality.

Types of ''hibakujumoku''

''Hibakujumoku'' species are listed in the UNITAR database, shown below, combined with data from ''Hiroshima and Nagasaki: The Physical, Medical, and Social Effects of the Atomic Bombings''. A more extensive list, including distance from the hypocenter for each tree, is available in ''Survivors: The A-bombed Trees of Hiroshima''.

List

Surviving trees in Nagasaki

Although not as well known as the hibakujumoku in Hiroshima, there are a number of similar survivors in the vicinity of the hypocenter in Nagasaki. Approximately 50 of these trees have been documented in English.Petersen, David. (2012). ''Prayers in Stone: Nagasaki's A-bomb Heritage Sites''. Lulu Press, Morrisville, NC, USA.

References