How long did the USS Missouri surrender ceremony last?

The USS Missouri surrender ceremony lasted 23 minutes.

The proceedings began at about 9:02 a.m. Japan Standard Time on 2 September 1945 and concluded at approximately 9:25 a.m. During that short interval, the Japanese delegation signed the surrender document, followed by representatives of the Allied nations.

General Douglas MacArthur opened the ceremony and signed for the Allied powers. Mamoru Shigemitsu signed for the Japanese government, and General Yoshijirō Umezu signed for Imperial General Headquarters. Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz then signed for the United States.

The ceremony was carefully arranged aboard Missouri in Tokyo Bay and was broadcast around the world. Its brevity sometimes causes confusion with the longer political process that preceded it. Japan had announced its decision to surrender in August, but the 23-minute event was the formal signing that ended hostilities and established the surrender in an official document.