Guadalcanal

Following the victory of Midway, the United States prepared its first major offensive. On August 7, 1942, the First Marine Division landed at Guadalcanal, one of the Solomon Islands, and seized a nearly completed airport there. At the same time the nearby islands of Tulagi, Gavutu, and Tanambogo were seized.

The invasion suffered a serious blow the following night when Japanese naval forces in the Battle of Savo Island sank the American cruisers Astoria, Quincy, and Vincennes, and the Australian cruiser Canberra. Japanese reinforcements were landed, and the Marine division fought a series of desperate encounters to hold the airport. The American carrier Wasp was sunk by a submarine while supporting the Guadalcanal operation, and the Hornet was lost in a carrier battle near the Santa Cruz Islands. For a time the Enterprise was the only American carrier active in the Pacific.

American forces, including the new battleships South Dakota and Washington, fought a decisive series of engagements known as the Battle of Guadalcanal, November 12-15. The Japanese lost 2 battleships, a heavy cruiser, 3 destroyers, and 11 transports. The United States lost 3 light cruisers and 7 destroyers. Guadalcanal was secured on February 9, 1943.