Hi friend, 

The name “Oppenheimer” has been circulating widely throughout the science, news, and entertainment spheres over the last few months. We wouldn’t blame you if you were to ask yourself, “Who is this Oppenheimer fellow?” 

To answer that question, Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer was associated with one of the most significant moments of the 20th century — the start of the atomic age. 

The U.S. Department of Energy and America’s 17 National Labs can, in part, trace their origins to the Manhattan Project, which was active during the latter half of World War II. At the time, Dr. Oppenheimer was directly involved with its work as the first director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. 

While perhaps the most famous name associated with the highly secretive project, there were many others involved — including workers like Ruth Huddleston, a “Calutron Girl” who contributed to the project’s operations without fully knowing the scope of what was underway.