William Sterling Parsons

William Sterling Parsons, born on November twenty-sixth, nineteen oh one, was a distinguished American naval officer renowned for his pivotal role in the Manhattan Project during World War II. As an ordnance expert, he became the weaponeer on the Enola Gay, the aircraft that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, in nineteen forty-five. To mitigate the risk of a nuclear explosion in the event of a crash during takeoff, Parsons made the critical decision to arm the bomb while in flight. This involved him climbing into the cramped bomb bay to insert the powder charge and detonator.

A graduate of the United States Naval Academy in nineteen twenty-two, Parsons began his naval career aboard the battleship USS Idaho. His training in ordnance and ballistics, under the guidance of L. T. E. Thompson at the Naval Proving Ground in Dahlgren, Virginia, laid the foundation for his future innovations. In July nineteen thirty-three, he became the liaison officer between the Bureau of Ordnance and the Naval Research Laboratory, where he developed a keen interest in radar technology.

In September nineteen forty, Parsons collaborated with Merle Tuve from the National Defense Research Committee to develop the proximity fuze, a groundbreaking invention that would allow shells to explode near their targets. This technology, known as the VT fuze, was successfully deployed in nineteen forty-two. Parsons witnessed the first successful use of the VT fuze when the cruiser USS Helena shot down an enemy aircraft in the Solomon Islands in January nineteen forty-three.

Joining the Manhattan Project in June nineteen forty-three as Associate Director at Project Y in Los Alamos, New Mexico, Parsons was responsible for the ordnance aspects of nuclear weapon design and testing. Although he lost some responsibilities in a reorganization in nineteen forty-four, he continued to oversee the development of the gun-type fission weapon, which became known as Little Boy. He also managed the delivery program, codenamed Project Alberta, and observed the Trinity nuclear test from a B-29.

After the war, Parsons achieved the rank of rear admiral without having commanded a ship. He participated in Operation Crossroads, the nuclear tests at Bikini Atoll in nineteen forty-six, and later in the Operation Sandstone tests at Enewetak Atoll in nineteen forty-eight. In nineteen forty-seven, he became the deputy commander of the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project. Sadly, Parsons passed away from a heart attack in nineteen fifty-three.