Battle of the Coral Sea

Early in 1942 Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, the American naval commander in the Pacific, organized a series of raids by carrier task forces. They struck at the Marshall and Gilbert islands on February 1, 1942; at Wake on February 24; and at Marcus Island on March 4.

These strikes culminated in the Battle of the Coral Sea, May 4-8, the first sea battle ever fought where the opposing fleets never came within sight of each other, as all the attacks were made by aircraft from carriers. The Japanese had sent a huge invasion fleet into the Coral Sea to attempt a landing at Port Moresby, New Guinea, a step towards a possible invasion of Australia. A task force of American and Australian ships was sent to intercept the Japanese. In a series of attacks, while the fleets were 180 miles (290 km) apart, United States carrier planes sank the carrier Shoho and a destroyer and seriously damaged the carrier Shokaku and a cruiser. Japanese airplanes sank the carrier Lexington. The Japanese were forced to call off the invasion of Port Moresby. This was the first time their advance had been checked in the southern Pacific.