Remembering Pearl Harbor

December 7 marks the 82nd anniversary of the attack.

Meg Godlewski

Thursday, December 07, 2023 at 06:13 PM ET

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A B-17C destroyed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. [Shutterstock]

Key Takeaways:

The surprise Japanese aerial attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, resulted in 2,403 American deaths, 1,178 wounded, and significant destruction of U.S. ships and aircraft, becoming a pivotal moment in WWII.
Ford Island, a key target during the attack, now hosts the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum, preserving war scars and serving as a site for annual remembrance ceremonies.
The attack has been depicted in various films, from historically collaborative dramas like *Tora! Tora! Tora!* and a controversial 1943 documentary, to a fictionalized romantic blockbuster (*Pearl Harbor*) and a time-travel sci-fi film (*Final Countdown*).

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Thursday is Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. In the famous words of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, “December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy,” as it was when the Japanese military initiated a surprise aerial attack on the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii.

According to History.com, the first wave of Japanese attack aircraft arrived just before 0800, consisting of of 180 airplanes, including torpedo aircraft, dive bombers, fighters, and high-level bombers. A second wave of similar size and made up mostly of dive bombers followed.