atomic age

American  

noun

1. the period in history initiated by the first use of the atomic bomb and characterized by atomic energy as a military, political, and industrial factor.

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atomic age British  

noun

1. the current historical period, initiated by the development of the first atomic bomb towards the end of World War II and now marked by a balance of power between nations possessing the hydrogen bomb and the use of nuclear power as a source of energy

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Etymology

Origin of atomic age

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

It was running headlong into the Atomic Age.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 8, 2022

Now, it is giving way to a looming era of disorder unlike any since the beginning of the Atomic Age.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 1, 2022

U.S. leaders duly declared that the second half of the 20th century would be the Atomic Age.

From Scientific American • Aug. 24, 2020

Atomic Age creature features — about mutant people, animals and insects gone wild — are escapist nostalgia trips that make up in fun what they lack in quality.

From New York Times • Apr. 2, 2020

Together these areas represented the centered power of the planet in the first years of the Atomic Age.

From "I, Robot" by Isaac Asimov