Planet in Peril - Michael D. Bess

"Everything was finally in place. The scientists stood in their observation bunker in the Alamogordo desert, staring through the lenses of their protective glasses at the tower five miles away where the world''s first atomic device awaited an electric pulse for detonation. It was 5:29 a.m. on July 19, 1945. The previous evening, one of the smartest persons in the world had decided it was time to lighten things up a bit. Enrico Fermi glanced round at his fellow scientists and said, in his heavy Italian accent, "Now, let''s make a bet whether the atmosphere will be set on fire by this test."1 He wondered aloud whether this would incinerate only New Mexico or spread to the entire planet. Laughter followed, some of it nervous. A few people took him up on it"--