Atomic Energy Commission

Table of Contents

Introduction References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images, Videos & Interactives

J. Robert Oppenheimer

The true story of Oppenheimer and the atomic bomb

Manhattan Project interactive timeline

Read Next

Atomic cloud formation from the Baker Day explosion over the Bikini Atoll; photo created July 25, 1946. (Test Baker, mushroom cloud, underwater nuclear explosion)

Why Does a Mushroom Cloud Look Like a Mushroom?

Abandoned school in Pripyat in the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear plant

Nuclear Exclusion Zones

Smoke billowing 20,000 feet above Hiroshima, Japan, from the first atomic bomb every dropped in World War II.

70 Years After Hiroshima

Community service - volunteers picking up garbage in a park during a spring cleanup. Environmentalism

A Timeline of Environmental History

The First Atomic Bombs infographic, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Japan, United States, nuclear weapon, atomic bomb, World War II, WWII

The First Atomic Bombs Tested and Used During World War II

Discover

Lake Mead (the impounded Colorado River) at the Hoover Dam. The light-coloured band of rock above the shoreline shows the decrease in water level in the first few years of the 21st century.

6 Lakes That Are Drying Up

An ancient egyptian hieroglyphic painted carving showing the falcon headed god Horus seated on a throne and holding a golden fly whisk. Before him are the Pharoah Seti and the goddess Isis. Interior wall of the temple to Osiris at Abydos, Egypt.

11 Egyptian Gods and Goddesses

Close up of praying mantis walking on stone ground against a blurred background in Japan

6 Animals That Eat Their Mates

Statue of Nostradamus

Nostradamus and His Prophecies

Time zone map with standard time zones and International Date Line

Why Are Some Time Zones 30 Minutes Off Instead of an Hour?

Paul Revere. "The bloody massacre perpetrated in King Street Boston on March 5th 1770 by a party of the 29th Regt.," engraved by Paul Revere. Boston Massacre.

There’s a Riot Goin’ On: Riots in U.S. History (Part One)

NBA Lakers Celtics Finals Kevin Garnett shooting.

10 Great Sports Rivalries

Atomic Energy Commission: Facts & Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: May 31, 2025

News •

French Polynesia nuclear tests: How the Atomic Energy Commission is funding a counter-narrative on contamination • May 27, 2025, 8:20 AM ET (Le Monde)

Partial recount ordered in Goldstein as Bradfield still to be decided — as it happened • May 26, 2025, 8:15 AM ET (ABC News (Australia))

Facts

Also Known As	AEC
Date	1946 - present
Areas Of Involvement	nuclear weapon • nuclear power • nuclear energy
Related People	Isidor Isaac Rabi • James Brown Fisk

Photos and Videos

J. Robert Oppenheimer

The true story of Oppenheimer and the atomic bomb

See All Videos, Images and Interactives →

Topics

Central Intelligence Agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration KGB Federal Bureau of Investigation National Security Agency MI6 Mossad U.S. Secret Service U.S. Department of Defense Environmental Protection Agency