netw rks

NAME _______________________________________ DATE _______________ CLASS _________

America and World War II, 1941–1945

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MidwayJune 4 –7, 1942

TarawaNov. 20 –23, 1943

GuadalcanalAug. 7, 1942 – Feb. 9, 1943

Coral SeaMay 4 – 8, 1942

Leyte GulfOct. 23–26, 1944

SaipanJune 15–July 9, 1944

GuamJuly 21–Aug. 10, 1944

Marshall Islands

Feb. 1944

Iwo JimaFeb. 19 –March 26, 1945

HiroshimaAug. 6, 1945

NagasakiAug. 9, 1945

OkinawaApr. 1–June 22, 1945

ManilaMarch 4, 1945

AttuMay 11–27, 1943

Japan surrenderson battleship MissouriSept. 2, 1945

Tokyo

ShanghaiChongqing

Bangkok

Batavia

Darwin

Nanjing

Lashio

Beijing

HongKong

Singapore

Pearl Harbor

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NewHebrides

ElliceIs.

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Sakhalin

Kuril Is.

Borneo

Java

Palau Is.

Luzon

Mindanao

Okinawa

Sumatra

Solomon Is.

Wake Island

Kiska

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Nauru

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PACIFICOCEAN

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INDIA

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FRENCHINDOCHINA

PHILIPPINES

SOVIETUNION

MONGOLIA MANCHURIA

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Japanese Empire andconquestsFarthest extent ofJapan’s conquests,July 1942Allied forcesMajor battleAtomic bombing

Island Hopping in the Pacific, 1942–1945

Geography and History Activity

Island Hopping

Advancing on JapanThe war in the Pacific involved a major geographic obstacle: the Pacific Ocean. In order to attack Japan, U.S. forces would have to advance across thousands of miles of ocean and attack heavily fortified Japanese positions on small, strategically important islands. The U.S. strategy involved a two-pronged advance. The U.S. navy would island hop through the central Pacific while the Army advanced through the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, and the Philippines. Tarawa was the U.S. navy’s first objective. The Japanese base there had to be captured in order to put air bases in the nearby Marshall Islands. After the Marshall Islands, the U.S. navy targeted the Mariana Islands. The U.S. military planners wanted to use the Marianas as a base for a new heavy bomber, the B-29 Superfortress. From airfields in the Marianas, the B-29s would be in range of the Japanese mainland and could begin a bombing campaign intended to end the war.

Caption: This map shows the naval and army advances across the Pacific from 1942–1945.

United States History and Geography: Modern Times

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netw rks

NAME _______________________________________ DATE _______________ CLASS _________

America and World War II, 1941–1945

Copyright ©

The McG

raw-H

ill Com

panies, Inc. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom

use.Geography and History Activity Cont.

Understanding Concepts1. What geographic challenge led to the use of island hopping?

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2. What were some of the dangers posed by the island hopping strategy?

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3. What did the United States gain by capturing the Mariana Islands?

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Applying Concepts

4. How do you think U.S. bombing of the Japanese mainland contributed to the end of the war in the Pacific?

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5. Do you think the United States was justified in the use of atomic weapons in the Pacific? Why or why not?

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Directions: Answer the questions below in the space provided.

The Difficulties of Island HoppingBy the fall of 1943, the U.S. navy was ready to launch its island-hopping campaign, but the geography of the central Pacific posed a problem. Many of the islands were coral reef atolls. The water over the coral reef was not always deep enough to allow landing craft to get to the shore. If the landing craft ran aground on the reef, the troops would have to wade to the beach. Wading ashore under enemy fire led to very high casualty rates among U.S. troops.

United States History and Geography: Modern Times

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