Pearl Harbor

On 7 December 1941, a deadly surprise attack on the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor by Japanese planes sank or damaged 21 warships and destroyed more than 150 planes on nearby airfields. The attack, which was launched without a declaration of war, killed more than 2,000 Americans

The destroyer USS Shaw explodes in a massive fireball at Pearl Harbor, 7 December 1941. The attack led almost immediately to Germany declaring war on America, and so brought Stalin an unexpected ally of colossal potential power, says Laurence Rees. (Bettmann/Getty Images)

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The battleship USS California following the attack at Pearl Harbor

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12 things you (probably) didn’t know about Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor sparked an aircraft-manufacturing drive – and, for the first time, allowed US women to perform jobs previously held only by men. (Photo by Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Pearl Harbor aftermath: the fallout from the attack

Lauren Bruner and Iyozo Fujita

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Pearl Harbor: 5 frontline stories from people who were there

Mixed signals: A shortwave radio listening post in California, set up to report and translate broadcasts from Asia. (Photo by AP/Shutterstock)

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Caught off guard: why didn’t America see Pearl Harbor coming?

The neutral USA entered World War II only when a Japanese fleet launched a big surprise air raid against its Pacific naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on 7 December 1941. (Photo by Fox Photos/Getty Images)

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A mushroom cloud over Nagasaki, Japan

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The Pearl Harbour attack

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Firemen tackling a blitz fire at St Paul's Cathedral, London

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American president Franklin D Roosevelt

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The USS Arizona burning in Pearl Harbor following the Japanese attack. To the left of her are USS Tennessee and the sunken USS West Virginia. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

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The shock of Pearl Harbor

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The attack on Pearl Harbor and physics through the ages

A Japanese photograph shows Mitsubishi dive bombers warming up on the deck of a carrier in the Pacific before their attack on Pearl Harbor in the early hours of 7 December 1941. (Photo by Corbis via Getty Images)

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Britain’s Pearl Harbor

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Pearl Harbor: Three films