Red Cloud at Dawn: Truman Stalin and the End of the Atomic Monopoly

A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS CHOICE. Following the trail of espionage and technological innovation and making use of newly opened archives Michael D. Gordin provides a new understanding of the origins of the nuclear arms race and fresh insight into the problem of proliferation.. On August 29 1949 the first Soviet test bomb dubbed First Lightning exploded in the deserts of Kazakhstan. This surprising international event marked the beginning of an arms race that would ultimately lead to nuclear proliferation beyond the two superpowers of the Soviet Union and the United States.. With the use of newly opened archives Michael D. Gordin folows a trail of espionage secrecy deception political brinksmanship and technical innovation to provide a fresh understanding of the nuclear arms race.