Too Long; Didn't Read
The Manhattan Project was the effort to build a sustained nuclear chain reaction and turn it into a reality (the atomic bomb) for the war effort. The effort actually went well beyond the Los Alamos, New Mexico lab, but MIT's Rad Lab helped develop radar. Radar was a continuation of the work of a privately owned predecessor lab, known as the Loomis Laboratory, which was set up by a wealthy businessman. Radar is now a staple of all air and sea travel for the military and civilians.