Hiroshima - Inside The Atomic Bomb Dome

Have you heard of the Atomic Bomb Dome or Genbaku Dōmu before? The Genbaku Dōmu is located in Hiroshima city, Hiroshima prefecture, and has the unusual distinction of being a surviving atomic bomb site. It was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996 as a symbol of the importance of peace.

Although the Atomic Bomb Dome has been visited by many people from Japan as well as from all over the world, visitors cannot enter inside of the building in order for the structural integrity of the building to be preserved.

However, we can get an idea of what it looks like using Google Street View. Let's take a closer look at the inside of the Atomic Bomb Dome.

The Location of the Atomic Bomb Dome

The Atomic Bomb Dome is located in downtown Hiroshima city. If you take a tramway from Hiroshima Station, you will be there in about twenty minutes. So it is really easy for visitors to the city to get there.

The History of the Atomic Bomb Dome

Before it was all but destroyed during the Allied bombing, this structure was the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall. It was established as an institution where you could see products from not only Hiroshima prefecture but also all over Japan, and was used as an art exhibition hall and government offices.

The atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945. After the clean-up of the city began, this half-destroyed ruin was preserved and the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall began being called the Atomic Bomb Dome by the citizens of Hiroshima.

The Atomic Bomb Dome placed in Hiroshima city

The Atomic Bomb Dome stands silent and still over the city of Hiroshima; once a stunning red brick structure, the now exposed blackened steel skeleton of the Atomic Bomb Dome is a stark contrast with the whitened brick faces that remain. A black fence circles the circumference of the site, preventing people from entering the ruins.

Please place your cursor on the screen above then click and drag it. The point of view will change, allowing you to see how Hiroshima was rebuilt after the atomic bomb was dropped.

Inside the Atomic Bomb Dome

Let's see inside the Atomic Bomb Dome via Google Street View.

We are now inside the black fence. Already it feels different in here, compared to the area beyond the fence. There are bricks and pieces of masonry that have fallen all over the ground around the site.

And here is the interior of the building. The black structures you can see here are in place to keep the building from collapsing.

Following the explosion there were far more necessary repairs needed in Hiroshima, so the Prefectural Hall was not immediately repaired. However as it became recognized as a symbol by the citizenry, and over fears of its potential collapse due to heavy winds and rain, preservation work began on the Atomic Bomb Dome in 1967.

Since then, preservation work has been done several times using donations made by people from all over the world.

In the inner part of this area, there is a space with hundreds of red bricks scattered about. This view really gives you a sense of the destructive power of the bomb.

Cenotaph for the Mobilized Students

This is the Cenotaph the Mobilized Students which stands 12 meters tall and features the Goddess of Peace as well as 8 doves. This statue was placed in order to remember the lives and sacrifice of the 10 thousand students who lost their lives during the Pacific War and bombing of Hiroshima. There are many other statues and memorials to be seen in the Peace Memorial Park, which you can view via Google Street View or in person.

In Closing

As the years pass, there are fewer and fewer people alive who have experienced the horrors of World War II, but the Atomic Bomb Dome stands as a steadfast reminder of this world-changing event. By seeing the inside of the dome, it is our hope that the magnitude of that day and those since will continue to be understood by the generations to come.

For more information on Hiroshima:

Information

Atomic Bomb Dome

Address: Hiroshima, Hiroshima city, Naka, Ōtemachi 1-10
Hours: -
Closed: -
Wi-fi: -
Credit Cards: -
Other Languages: -
Menus/Pamphlets in Other Languages: -
Nearest Station: Genbaku Dome-mae Station (原爆ドーム前駅) on Hiroden Main Line
Access: Right by the Genbaku Dome-mae Station
Phone number: +81-82-242-7831
Website: The Atomic Bomb Dome (has translation function)
All pictures from PIXTA