AUGUST 9, 1945

The Enola Gay, piloted by Col. Paul Tibbets, gets all the press for dropping the first atomic bomb on Japan, but the bomb that ended WWII was dropped by Bockscar, piloted by Major Charles Sweeney, over Nagasaki, Japan, on August 9, 1945.

The first Atomic blast (Little Boy) over Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 failed to convince the Japanese to surrender, so the plan to drop a second bomb (Fat Man) was put into action. But in war, things change. If not for a couple last minute changes, you wouldn't be reading about Nagasaki or Bockscar. Instead, history would be telling the story of Kokura and The Great Artiste.

61 years ago today, the world changed. Read the timeline of events that day and how a couple last minute changes diverted history, and the lives of thousands.