Where in 1945 did Japan sign its formal surrender to the Allies?

Japan signed its formal surrender in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945.

The signing took place aboard USS Missouri, which was anchored in the bay near Japan’s capital. Japanese representatives signed the Instrument of Surrender, followed by General Douglas MacArthur and representatives of the Allied powers. The ceremony formally ended hostilities between Japan and the Allies.

Tokyo Bay was a practical and symbolic location. Allied naval forces had entered Japanese waters after the government accepted the surrender terms, while the nearby capital was becoming the center of the Allied occupation. Holding the ceremony aboard an American battleship demonstrated Allied naval power without requiring the delegates to gather in a damaged Japanese government building.

Tokyo Bay should not be confused with the location of the Potsdam Conference, where the surrender terms were announced, or with Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which were devastated by atomic bombings in August 1945. The formal document was signed at sea, not in either bombed city.