2. The War in the Pacific

4. Pearl Harbor Memorial

6. Gun Turret Base of USS Arizona

7. Oil Still Bubbling up from the USS Arizona

8. The U.S. Goes to War
Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 in an attempt to destroy the U.S. Pacific fleet
U.S. declared war on Japan Dec. 8th
Germany and Italy declared war on the U.S. soon after

9. US fought a “holding action” in the Pacific and focused on Europe 1st
US went on the offensive after the Battle of Midway in 1942
US then began “island-hopping” toward Japan

12. The battle to retake the Philippine Islands began in 1944
Iwo Jima and Okinawa in 1945 were to be the most intense battles in the Pacific
By mid-1945, the US was planning a direct attack on the Japanese mainland

14. The Manhattan Project
The US raced to build the 1st atomic bomb assuming Germany was also in the process of doing so
1st atomic bomb was detonated on July 16, 1945 in the New Mexico desert
Now that the bomb was ready, the question was how the US would use it

15. The War in the Pacific Ends
Truman decided to use the bomb to force Japan’s surrender in 1945
At least 140,000 people were killed when atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Japan surrendered unconditionally in August, 1945 ending World War II

16. Fat Man

17. Little Boy

20. “A-Bomb Dome” at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park