It is 75 years since the US dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of 
Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6 and 9 August, leading to the end of World War Two.
The recorded death tolls are estimates, but it is thought that about 140,000 of Hiroshima's 350,000 population were killed in the blast, and that at least 74,000 people died in Nagasaki.
The nuclear radiation released by the bombs caused thousands more people to die from radiation sickness in the weeks, months and years that followed.
Those who survived the bombings are known as "hibakusha". Survivors faced a horrifying aftermath in the cities, including psychological trauma.
Following the end of the fighting in Europe on 7 May 1945, the Allies told Japan to surrender by 28 July, but the deadline passed without them doing so.
An estimated 71,000 soldiers from Britain and the Commonwealth were killed in the war against Japan, including more than 12,000 prisoners of war who died in Japanese captivity.
On 6 August 1945 at 08:15 Japanese time, an American B-29 bomber plane named Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima.
However, Japan did not surrender. Three days later, the Americans dropped another atomic bomb on the city of Nagasaki at 11:02 Japanese time.
The bombings brought about an abrupt end to the war in Asia, with Japan surrendering unconditionally to the Allies on 14 August 1945.
