The island of Wahoo is the third largest in the Hawaiian archipelago.

With Kauai to the northwest and Molokai to the southeast, it lies about 2,400 miles from the west coast of the mainland United States, deep in the Pacific Ocean.

The southern coast of the island is characterized by sandy palm-tree-lined beaches, interspersed

with rocky cliffs, all against a backdrop of green-carpeted volcanic mountains.

It is idyllic, honestly.

Just looking it up on the internet puts you at high risk of booking a flight to Hawaii.

But near the center of this southern coast, the calm turquoise waters flow inland into a lagoon.

Here, palm trees make way for the sprawling concrete structures of joint-based Pearl Harbor Hickham.

It is here, approaching the mouth of the harbor three hours before sunrise on the 7th of December, 1941. The crew aboard the

minesweeper USS Condor cite what looks like a submarine periscope. It is around 3.42 a.m.,

and the crew immediately report their sighting to the watchdog on guard at the harbor mouth,

the USS Ward. Abboard this World War I destroyer, Lieutenant William W. Outerbridge is engaged in his first mission as ship command.

Outerbridge and his crew searched fruitlessly for the source of the sighting, eventually dismissing it as bogus.

Outerbridge returns to his cabin to sleep, not knowing that the Condor's

crew had in fact sighted a periscope, and that it was attached to one of the five, 46-ton

Japanese midget submarines tasked with penetrating the harbor. Two and a half hours after

the periscope was spotted, another ship is approaching the harbor mouth.

This time, it's the store ship USS Ontaris.

Aboard the watchdog USS Ward, the phone by Outer Bridge's bunk rings.

Captain, come on the bridge.

At 6.37 a.m., lookouts on the Antares had sighted a small submarine tower, and this time, it is confirmed.

At 6.45 a.m., two shots are fired from the USS Ward's 4-inch guns, followed by a depth charge.

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