Assault in Norway: Sabotaging the Nazi Nuclear Program [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

While teaching chemistry this year, I came across the word deuterium, which stands for what is called 'heavy water.' I was browsing around looking for more information on the difference between regular hydrogen, deuterium, and tritium, for my class...as I have found that the more history given in chemistry classes, the more the students are likely to remember technical information if they understand what it was used for.

During WWII there was a perceived race between the Allies and Germany to be the first to come up with an atomic bomb. The Allies were right to be worried because most of the work on nuclear energy had been done in Germany prior to the war, by people like Einstein and Fermi. These men were quickly moved out of Germany, and into Britain and the U.S., as their minds were worth their weight in gold.

One of the ways to cause a nuclear reaction is to use heavy water. Hydrogen under normal conditions has a proton and an electron, but no neutron within its nucleus. In order to start a nuclear reaction, a nucleus has to bombard uranium or plutonium, and regular water cannot supply that neutron. Deuterium is an isotope of hydrogen that has a neutron in its nucleus, and so can start a reaction.

The Germans did not have access to heavy water, and this was part of the reason that they invaded Norway early, as Norway had an outstanding heavy water facility. Those involved in the production of the atomic bomb in this country were very concerned that the Nazis were about 2 years ahead of us in creating a bomb. This threat was enough to be of importance to Franklin Deleanor Roosevelt and winston Churchill, and to General Groves who was the military arm of the Los Alamos group creating the bomb in the U.S. Groves made it clear that the Norsk Hydra plant needed to be taken out of commission immediately.

Both British and Norwegian loyalists were involved in this joint effort. Luckily the men who created the Norsk plant were in England and could give detailed instruction to the men who were to sabotage the plant. the first attempt at gliding British into Norway ended in disaster, when the gliders crashed, and those who survived the crash were murdered by the

Germans. The second attempt, made up of all Norwegians, was more successful, and they not only blew up important parts of the plant, but made it home to Britain in safety.

Unfortunately, the Germans were able to get the plant up and running sooner than expected, and were sending heavy water to Germany for safekeeping. This meant that another sabotage needed to be planned, one that would sink the barrels of heavy water in the deep part of a fjord. and this time the lives of innocent Norwegians were lost as they could not take the chance of alerting civilians and having the Germans suspect something.

I wish the book had explained more about the chemistry of the heavy water, but the book was an enjoyable historical read, as so much of the information came first hand from those Norwegians involved. I found enough information on the Internet to explain the process using heavy water, and it is still used today in Canada.

The Norwegians should be proud of the part they played in defeating the Germans...as someone of Norwegian ancestry, I am proud of what they sacrificed.

Karen Sadler,

Science Education

The world might be very different if the Nazi war machine had developed the atom bomb before their defeat in WW II. They were working on it at the same time the "Manhattan Project" was under way in Chicago and later in New Mexico. A critical part of the German effort to develop "the bomb" was located in occupied Norway where the Nazi's were manufacturing "heavy water". This is the story of the allies first hindered, then derailed that effort.

It is a cliffhanging [literally] good yarn full of danger, loyalty, courage and improvisation in the face of disaster. It has one of the best chase scenes I've encountered anywhere. It also shows the contribution of the people of Norway to the allied effort to defeat Hitler's Germany. It was good a number of years ago when I first read it and it is just as good now. I'm glad to see it back in print.

Thomas Gallagher was an old family friend, so in some respects my review of his works may be slightly biased. In fact, in the years before he died, he was a mentor to me in my own writing. Unfortunately, he passed on before he could see that I dedicated my first novel to him.

In terms of his books, PADDY'S LAMENT and ASSAULT IN NORWAY are among his best. Mr. Gallagher always had a talent for taking an obscure event in history and showing its importance in such a way that the final product reads like a novel. I first read both of the above works in 1990, while still in college, and I remember marvelling at how crisp every one of his sentences was. He achieved elegance through hard work, and both of these works are testament to it.