It was the split second that claimed five lives, and saw their last moments frozen forever.
An army photographer captured the moment she and four others were killed in Afghanistan, with the photo now being released by the US army nearly four years later.
On July 2, 2013, a mortar tube accidentally exploded while Specialist Hilda Clayton was photographing a live-fire training drill in Afghanistan with four Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers, one of whom she was training in combat photography.
Now, the photos taken by 22-year-old Clayton and the trainee have been published in the May-June edition of the Army's Military Review journal.
According to the accompanying article, the accident occurred during a "critical juncture of the war, when it was necessary for the ANA [Afghan National Army] to increasingly assume responsibility for military actions".
The Army's Military Review added that the article aimed to highlight gender equality and the dangers "military men and women faced both in training and in combat".
"Clayton's death symbolises how female soldiers are increasingly exposed to hazardous situations in training and in combat on par with their male counterparts," the article read.
The photos were published with the permission of the Clayton family.
The Army said the family should be proud.
"Not only did Clayton help document activities aimed at shaping and strengthening the [US-Afghan] partnership but she also shared in the risk by participating in the effort."
Clayon, from Augusta, Georgia, has now had a photography award named in her honour by the US Department of Defense.
Military photographers must pass a five-day test of their physical and technical skills to qualify for the annual Spc Hilda Clayton Best Combat Camera award.
Fairfax Media