Nautilus submarine crew9/22/2023 Originally launched on January 21, 1954, by Mamie Eisenhower, the Nautilus became the first commissioned nuclear-powered ship in the United States Navy. The Electric Boat Division of the General Dynamics Corp., in Groton, Connecticut, constructed the ship. The 1,830-mile journey was launched from Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on July 23, 1958, under the name “Operation Sunshine” and brought the sub and her crew to the shores of England in 19 days. 25-28 at the Groton Inn and Suites.On August 3, 1958, the USS Nautilus (SSN-571) made history by becoming the first ship to pass underneath the North Pole. The Nautilus Alumni Association is planning a reunion Sept. Several events are planned at the museum leading up to the anniversary, including a book signing and lecture by Alfred McLaren about the USS Queenfish on July 12, one by Don Keith about the Nautilus on Aug. Sarah Martin, who works at the Naval Submarine Base, was the graphic designer for the exhibit. A “Welcome Home PANOPOs” banner is one of the artifacts on display in the new exhibit. Those on board nicknamed themselves PANOPOs, an acronym from the phrase from the Pacific to the Atlantic via the North Pole. “All we knew was when we ended up in England, everyone and their brother wanted an autograph.” “I’m not sure we really appreciated the depth of what had just happened, and I think it was a long time before any of us realized it,” Charette said. Once the Nautilus surfaced, Anderson sent a message to the Navy: “Nautilus 90 North.” “He said the dot would stop and go in the other direction, and it did,” Carr said. Lyon pointed to a machine with a green dot going around in a circle. 3, 1958.Ĭarr said he asked the scientist on the trip, “how will we know we crossed the pole?” Dr. Kenneth Carr, who was then a lieutenant and later retired as a vice admiral, said it was “pretty routine on board” as they neared 90 degrees North on Aug. The crew returned to Pearl Harbor and waited a month for the ice to break up and melt before making another attempt to go to Portland, England, by way of the North Pole. At one point, the 320-foot submarine had just a few feet of water over its sail and about 20 feet below the keel. The submarine headed to the North Pole but encountered heavy ice and shallow water on the way. Nautilus visited the Pacific in 1958, under the cover of teaching those in the Pacific Fleet about nuclear submarines. “We spent 72 hours trying to find our way out and that was really, really scary,” Kurrus said. Anderson gave the order to turn back because there was no way to fix the ship’s position. When the ship lost power to its gyrocompasses, Cmdr. The crew had been in the Arctic a year earlier to see how the submarine would operate under the ice. The successful 1958 trip was not the Nautilus’ first attempt to cross from the Pacific to the Atlantic over the top of the world. The exhibit, which includes artifacts and previously unpublished color images, runs through March 2009. Navy Submarine Force Museum recently for the unveiling of a new exhibit that commemorates the 50th anniversary of their voyage. They received the Presidential Unit Citation, the first ever issued in peacetime.Ĭharette, Kurrus and another former crew member, Joe Degnan, were at the U.S. The crew of 116 men reached the North Pole 50 years ago today, at 11:15 p.m., Aug. “We wanted to out-Sputnik the Russians,” Charette said. About 10 months earlier, the Soviet Union had launched the first artificial satellite into space. Nautilus (SSN 571) left Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, July 23, 1958, under top-secret orders to conduct Operation Sunshine, the first crossing of the North Pole by a ship. “Wouldn’t it be nice to go to sea one more time?” We feel very confident we could do that again,” said Jack Kurrus, an engineman also on that trip. “We remember each little feature of rigging it for dive. “Every time we have a reunion, the crew thinks we should go out and get that ship under way. “When you first join the Navy and look forward to 20 years and retirement, you say, ‘That’s forever.’ I put 28 in and it seems like it all happened just yesterday,” said Al Charette, a sonarman on board for the North Pole trip. Former USS Nautilus crew members say it does not seem like 50 years have passed since they made their historic crossing of the North Pole under the ice cap, and that if the Navy would kindly give them another nuclear power plant, they could man their ship and head back out to sea.
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