What had begun with a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 ended in defeat for Japan in 1945 when it signed the terms of surrender that ended World War II.

The Japanese formally signed the surrender Sept. 2, 1945, aboard the U.S.S. Missouri. But Japan had actually capitulated on Aug. 14 after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The news of Japan's surrender ignited a celebration throughout much of the United States. It became known as V-J Day -- Victory in Japan Day.

Nazi Germany had surrendered four months earlier in May, which also set off celebrations in American streets.

The war was over, accomplished at a horrific price: Almost 15 million people dead, with 40 percent of those being Russian. The United States suffered 291,000 deaths in battle, with another 670,000 wounded.

Peace had finally come to a war-weary, battle-scarred world. But it was only the prelude to a Cold War that would last for generations.