aerial photograph
Auschwitz II (Birkenau) Camp

Reconnaissance photograph of Auschwitz II (Birkenau) taken September 13, 1944, by an American B-24 bomber during the bombing of the IG Farben factory. Falling bombs are visible at left.

During missions like these, reconnaissance teams used two different cameras, each fitted with lenses of different focal lengths.

This photo and the ones that follow were redeveloped and captioned by the CIA in 1978.

U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of National Archives