The Trinity test, a Fat Man casing, a Geiger counter and a desert test site 65 miles from Las Vegas. Here's what I learned at the Atomic Museum.
The Atomic Museum in Las Vegas is a Smithsonian affiliate. It tells the story of the nuclear tests carried out in the desert not far from the city.
## Will it work?
On 16 July 1945, scientists led by J. Robert Oppenheimer tested the first nuclear device, called the Gadget, in New Mexico. The test was named Trinity. I stood next to a full-size replica covered in cables.
## The egg-shaped bomb
A Fat Man casing, the Nagasaki design, sits under real 1945 newspapers. I had already been to Hiroshima, so it felt very serious.
## Measuring the invisible
I used a Geiger counter on samples like an old glowing watch. It clicks faster near more radiation. Then you test which shields block it best.
## Closer to home
In 1987 Aotearoa New Zealand became nuclear-free by law, and it still is.