The August 6 and August 9 are the two painful dates in the history of Japan. United States dropped two bombs respectively in Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 killed 140,000 and 70,000 people. Six days after the second bomb Japan surrendered and the World War II came to an end.
To ensure something similar never happens again a group of Japanese high school students are working on a virtual reality project to recreate sights and sounds of Hiroshima of the day 73 ago.
The students said people speaking any language would be able to understand after seeing the images while experiencing the VR.
The students are working on the VR at a technical high school in Fukuyama, which is roughly 100 kilometer east of Hiroshima.
One of the students aged just 18 said, “When I was creating the buildings before the atomic bomb fell and after, I saw many photos of buildings that were gone. I really felt how scary atomic bombs can be… So while creating this scenery, I felt it was really important to share this with others.”
The students interviewed survivors and studied old photographs to recreate the Hiroshima. Computer graphics are used to add details like wear and tear of building surfaces and lighting.
A student working on the project said people who knew the city earlier have appreciated their work saying it is very nostalgic.
Computer teacher Katsushi Hasegawa said, “Sometimes they start to reminisce about their memories from that time, and it really makes me glad that we created this.”
