Minesweepers clear the way to the Agat shoreline while smaller craft carry the first Marines to assault the beach. A burning minesweeper shows that the battle has already begun in this aerial view of the beachhead.
Marines from the 3rd Marine Division churn toward the Asan shore on invasion day. These Marines, possibly from the 3rd Regiment, were given the task of rushing inland to capture cliffs and high ground, and prepare for further action to the east and southeast. 
A Marine takes cover upon hitting the beach; in foreground are what appears to be the legs of a comrade, perhaps wounded. Note the proximity to the shoreline of the destroyer in background (left). In Agat, Marine Captains Paul O'Neal and Milton Thompson plant the Stars and Stripes just eight minutes after U.S. forces land and attack the beachhead (right).
In Asan, Chorito Cliff and the beach below are engulfed in smoke from artillery, bombs, mortars; Marines rushing ashore at Red Beach 1, about center of photo, are met with intense fire from the hills and the cliff above.
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After intense fighting, the guns on Chorito Cliff were finally silenced by a destroyer and American tanks. And by the night of the first day in Asan, the beach was secured.
"Casualties here in one day exceeded the entire division casualties at Bougainville." . . The 3rd Marine Division
During the first night at Asan, the Marines encountered only light shelling and occasional patrols by the Japanese.
to be continued...
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