Remembering 9/11 in Pictures

Fleeing the Fire

Driven to the brink by fires and scorching temperatures during the attacks, people near the top of the World Trade Center’s north tower hang from windows as high as 1,300 feet above the streets of New York.

PHOTOGRAPH BY JOSE JIMENEZ, PRIMERA HORA/GETTY IMAGES

After 15 years, the attacks of September 11, 2001, are still fresh in the memories of many Americans.

Nearly 3,000 people in New York, Virginia, and Pennsylvania lost their lives on 9/11 in attacks carried out with hijacked airplanes by terrorists orchestrated by Osama bin Laden. As the years pass, suffering continues alongside the memorializing—among those who lost loved ones and by survivors who sustained injuries or who were forever changed by the horrific events—even as the country, and the world, changes.

The site of the New York City attacks is home to One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, and a marker of resilience in the face of tragedy. There are also memorials near thePentagon and in Stoystown, Pennsylvania.

This year, to honor the anniversary, the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York City—which opened in 2014—will host its first art exhibition. “Rendering the Unthinkable: Artists Respond to 9/11” will feature works from 13 artists affected by the attacks.

The President’s Men

U.S. President George W. Bush comforts New York City firefighter Lenard Phelan during a September 14 visit to ground zero. Phelan’s brother Kenneth, also a firefighter, was among hundreds of New York firefighters missing in the wake of the attacks.

Skyline, Forever Changed

The buildings of lower Manhattan are engulfed in clouds of smoke and debris as seen from Jersey City across the Hudson River shortly after the second tower collapsed on 9/11.

Ground Zero

The smoldering remains of the World Trade Center lie at the center of what would soon be dubbed ground zero.

PHOTOGRAPH BY ALEX FUCHS,

Street in Ruins

A lone person stands on a New York City street, seen after the twin towers’ collapse on 9/11.

PHOTOGRAPH BY JASON FLORIO, CORBIS

Enveloped in Ash

Marcy Borders is enveloped in ash after she escaped the World Trade Center’s south tower to take shelter in the lobby of a nearby office building. She passed away in 2015.

PHOTOGRAPH BY STAN HONDA

Escaping New York

This inbound view of the Brooklyn Bridge shows a mass exodus as people walk out of a smoky and chaotic Manhattan.

PHOTOGRAPH BY DANIEL SHANKEN, AP

Pentagon Fire

Firefighters battle a spreading blaze at the Pentagon.

PHOTOGRAPH BY JIM VARHEGYI, U.S. AIR FORCE VIA GETTY IMAGES

Frozen Moment

The World Trade Center’s south tower collapsed at 9:59 a.m. ET on 9/11, bringing the disaster that had been unfolding far above the street crashing down to engulf those below.

PHOTOGRAPH BY THOMAS NILSSON, GETTY IMAGES

“Falling Man”

This famous photograph, known as “Falling Man,” captures the plunge of an unknown victim of 9/11 from the north tower—one of many who jumped or fell to their deaths from the upper floors of the World Trade Center.

PHOTOGRAPH BY RICHARD DREW, AP

Silent Witness

The twin towers burn behind one of New York City’s iconic landmarks, the Empire State Building, on 9/11.

PHOTOGRAPH BY MARTY LEDERHANDLER, AP

Before the Collapse

People evacuate New York City’s Financial District on 9/11 as both World Trade Center towers burn.

PHOTOGRAPH BY SPENCER PLATT, GETTY IMAGES

Attack on the Pentagon

A video still shows American Airlines Flight 77 slamming into the western side of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, at 9:37 a.m. ET on 9/11, claiming the lives of 59 persons onboard and 125 on the ground.

STILL FROM VIDEO BY CNN VIA GETTY IMAGES

Moment of Impact

Smoke and flames billow as United Airlines Flight 175 crashes into the World Trade Center’s south tower on 9/11, killing everyone aboard and hundreds more inside the building.

PHOTOGRAPH BY SPENCER PLATT, GETTY IMAGES

Terror on the Ground

At 9:03 a.m. ET, United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the World Trade Center’s south tower, as seen in a still from a video taken from the ground on September 11, 2001. By hijacking four planes, terrorists made a deadly attack.

STILL FROM VIDEO BY EVAN FAIRBANKS, MAGNUM PHOTOS

Remembrance and Rebuilding

Seen in May 2014, the new One World Trade Center rises above New York City, just steps from Ground Zero.

PHOTOGRAPH BY SPENCER PLATT, GETTY IMAGES

Ruined Apartment

Seen on September 14, an apartment on Liberty Street in lower Manhattan is a burned-out shell following the collapse of the World Trade Center during the 9/11 attacks.