Rare picture of mushroom atomic cloud in Hiroshima

An extremely rare photograph of a giant mushroom cloud divided into two parts after the atomic bombing in Hiroshima, Japan was found.

Experts believe this black-and-white photo was taken about half an hour after the bombing on August 6, 1945, about 10km east of the bombing site.

The picture was found recently.

'The existence of this photo is always known in history books, but this is the first time a printed photo has been found , ' said a manager at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum.

'This huge, split mushroom cloud photo is extremely rare,' the official added.

The rare picture was found among the bombardment articles being kept at Hiroshima's Honkawa Elementary School.

So far, the best known images of Hiroshima bombing have been taken from the plane by US troops.

On August 6, 1945, the B52 aircraft called Enola Gay dropped the atomic bomb nicknamed 'Little Boy' on Hiroshima, turning the city of eastern Japan into a nuclear hell and taking the life of about 140,000 people at the end of World War II.

Three days later, another bomb - 'Fat Man' - was thrown into Nagasaki city, killing 70,000 others.