Hitler had nukes, says historian

Hitler had nukes, says historian

From correspondents in Berlin
March 07, 2005

NAZI Germany built a nuclear reactor and atomic weapons before the end of World War II, contrary to popular belief, a Berlin historian says in a book to be released this month.

In his book Hitler's bomb, Rainer Karlsch says a reactor was functioning by the winter of 1944/45 and that nuclear weapons were being tested on a Baltic Sea island and Thuringia, central Germany, under the supervision of the SS.

"The Third Reich was extremely close to winning the race to build the first working nuclear weapon," his publisher, Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt (DVA), said.

However the bomb was not well-developed enough to be dropped by air.

Karlsch, whose book will be released in Germany on March 14, maintains that he found "the first German nuclear reactor in working order" near Berlin and discovered documents on a project for a plutonium-based bomb dating from 1941.

According to DVA, his work was based on careful examination of building plans, aerial photographs, soil analyses, diaries of researchers linked to the project and reports by US and Russian spies.

Hitler had nukes, says historian

From correspondents in Berlin March 07, 2005
NAZI Germany built a nuclear reactor and atomic weapons before the end of World War II, contrary to popular belief, a Berlin historian says in a book to be released this month. In his book Hitler's bomb, Rainer Karlsch says a reactor was functioning by the winter of 1944/45 and that nuclear weapons were being tested on a Baltic Sea island and Thuringia, central Germany, under the supervision of the SS. "The Third Reich was extremely close to winning the race to build the first working nuclear weapon," his publisher, Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt (DVA), said. However the bomb was not well-developed enough to be dropped by air. Karlsch, whose book will be released in Germany on March 14, maintains that he found "the first German nuclear reactor in working order" near Berlin and discovered documents on a project for a plutonium-based bomb dating from 1941. According to DVA, his work was based on careful examination of building plans, aerial photographs, soil analyses, diaries of researchers linked to the project and reports by US and Russian spies.