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It's a calm December morning. The sun starts to slowly rise over the eastern horizon, glittering peacefully on Pearl Harbor. In one of the small houses in Pearl City--a peninsula that juts out into the harbor--Dale and Johnie Gano sleep soundly.

As they do, Japanese bombers are warming up their engines on the decks of four aircraft carriers, including the Kiryu. Then, with deckhands cheering them on, Commander Mitsuo Fuchida leads the way as 185 planes, in a first wave of attack, rise into the sky and head south toward Pearl Harbor.

Pearl Harbor Activity Station
Check out the map of Pearl Harbor. Based on what you can see, do you think Pearl Harbor is an easy or difficult area to attack?

Does the distance from Hawaii to Japan play a factor? How does being an island enhance or hinder a country's security?

Bomber - a large airplane that drops bombs on targets.

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