THE WINTER FORTRESS

THE WINTER FORTRESS, Neal Bascomb

When I finish a good book, there is a period of euphoria, of revelation and heightened understanding. This was a good book. About the obstruction/destruction and prevention of the heavy water program at Norsk Hydro, Vemork, Norway, that, had it not been successful could have led to the development of the atomic bomb by the Nazis.

I remember watching the movie a long time ago. It was not very good, and in fact it was just not truthful. The story of the Norwegian heroes is complex and, therefore, regrettably, not fit for Hollywood. The sacrifices and deaths of the heroes is the stuff of ballads and legends, but they were ordinary men tasked to perform extraordinary duties.

Son, Matt, has projected the characteristics upon modern inhabitants of Northern Minnesota and North Dakota, and I agree. These are, today, stoical people who perform at a high level without fanfare. Who face a harsh climate without hesitation. Plus the “slings and arrows” of any life that has, as its inevitable conclusion, death.

Back to the story: Norsk Hydro was in the business of producing electricity, and byproducts that were essential to Norwegian agriculture (fertilizer) and industry. Why the industrialists at the company determined that the production of “heavy water” (more later) was a good thing to do is never really explained, but at that time in the world of science and industry, there was an overlap.

An example:  In the 1984 book, “Three Degrees above Zero” the author, Jeremy Bernstein, describes the activities at Bell Labs. When I read it many years ago, the thought struck me that this could never happen in today’s world. That was in the 1990’s, and it is true today—there could never be significant money spent on “pure research.” We all know the money spent on frivolous research (i.e. the sex life of a Central American fruit fly) but get this—a few of the guys sitting around just thinking (this was the 1920’s) decided that they should travel from their cushy little spot in New Jersey with Bell Labs and go to Columbia University to find about this new theory, quantum mechanics, and off they went. That bunch ended up inventing the transistor.

I maintain that there is no place on earth where this kind of pure research could be tolerated today.

Back to the Norwegians. The arrogance of the Germans was immense, and it was not taken kindly by the descendants of the Vikings. Even today, a “Quisling” is a synonym for “traitor” and the person for whom this is named, Vidkun Quisling who was the Nazi sympathizer AND head of the puppet Norwegian government.

The stage is set. It is 1941, Norway has been overrun by the Nazis, and the only plant in the world that is effective in producing heavy water is located in Norway.

Heavy water is an isotope that has special characteristics in the absorption and control of nuclear fission. It is essential in the development of (at that time) the atomic bomb. Why did that company, in a remote place (Norway) decide that they should produce deuterium oxide (heavy water) when there was at that time no industrial use for it? Basically, I guess, because they could?

The book describes the immense personal effort expended to prevent the production of heavy water for the Nazi program that would have produced an atomic bomb. After all, they had the scientists to do it, except they either killed them or sent them elsewhere since they were Jews.

Many years ago, my then brother-in-law, Rick, knew that I was unable to quit reading a book. When presented with a book that was worthwhile, I would continue to slog through, read away, until done. So for Christmas (probably 1991?) he drew my name and presented me with the book, The Making of the Atomic Bomb. It seemed like it was ten thousand pages, but actually more like a thousand. There were so many parts that were beyond my comprehension. But I retained some things:

·         The brains that invented the bomb were Jews

·         Oddly, a lot of them were born in a small part of Hungary

·         General Groves was impossible, but effective

·         Again, this could never happen today

One of the paragraphs of the book begins, “It was December 23…[1942]” and I was reading it on December 23, 2018. Seventy-six years later, to the day. Amazing the changes that have happened in that time, close to the span of my life.

The scourge that caused these patriots to endure hardships, to have the weight of innocent lives on their conscience, has passed. It still exists in many parts of the world, but we are thankfully insulated from knowing about the atrocities in Africa and the Mid East. Simply hiding out in the blizzards that seemed to be a weekly occurrence on the Vidda (Hardangervidda, the inhospitable plateau that is near the Vemork hydro plant) was enough of a challenge, then planning, executing and evading the Germans was a bonus.

Recommend for all. Good read. If not for this and many others, we would be speaking German and Japanese and have an entirely different outlook.