The Important Thing About Jacques Cousteau

The important thing about Jacques Cousteau is that he was an underwater explorer. You should pronounce his name like this: ZHOCK koo-STOW. He became a scientist, sailor, inventor, and filmmaker. When Jacques was a young boy, water fascinated him. In the summer of 1920, Jacques was at camp. They sent him to clean the lake as a punishment. It wasn’t such a punishment for him though. It would actually change Jacques’s life forever! In 1920, the Cousteau’s moved to New York City on an eight day voyage. Jacques made friends with the sailors, and explored the whole boat. In college, Cousteau studied what he loved. He planned to become a pilot. But then, Jacques got into a serious car accident. He refused to cut off his arm, even though that’s what the doctors suggested. Instead, he worked on Navy ships at sea. There he began his lifelong career as a diver.

In 1943, Cousteau and a French engineer developed the aqualung (SCUBA). SCUBA may sound familiar to you. That’s because SCUBA (the aqualung) is an underwater breathing device that allows divers to stay underwater for hours! It stands for self-contained underwater breathing apparatus. Cousteau also developed ways to use a television camera underwater. In 1946, Cousteau converted the Calypso into a floating research exploration ship. On November 24, 1951, Cousteau went on the Calypso to his first expedition. It was to the Red Sea. It was perfect for filming there! In 1952, the Calypso found a Greek shipwreck that was more than two-thousand years old. They found it off the coast of Marseille. Jacques first book was published in 1953. It was called The Silent World. It was so popular that it would be translated into many more languages. The Silent World was also one of Jacques’s films. It came out in 1956. Jacques was interested in people living underwater. So, he conducted four experiments. In the experiment of 1962, two “aquanuts” lived thirty-seven feet below the surface. Three more bigger experiments were used. One was filmed and turned into an Oscar-winning movie! Cousteau then became a big television star. He and his crew explored and filmed some more. For more information, check out this video: The Story of Jacques Cousteau. But the important thing about Jacques Cousteau is that he was an underwater explorer.

 

Sources

  • AP PHOTO/THE COUSTEAU SOCIETY. CNN. ACCESSED NOV. 17.
  • Harris, Laurie Lanzen. “Cousteau, Jacques.” Biography for Beginners Online. Lincoln Library Press, 2015. FactCite, www.factcite.com/biobegin/10496.html. Accessed Nov. 16, 2017
  • “Underwater Discovery and Adventure: The Story of Jacques Cousteau ….” 11 Jun. 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9z08SD5iRuk. Accessed 16 Nov. 2017.
    • John Zronik. Jacques Cousteau : conserving underwater worlds. 2007
    • Merchant, Carolyn. “Cousteau, Jacques-Yves.” World Book Student, World Book, 2017, www.worldbookonline.com/student/article?id=ar137900. Accessed 16 Nov. 2017.
    • “Underwater Discovery and Adventure: The Story of Jacques Cousteau ….” 11 Jun. 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9z08SD5iRuk. Accessed 16 Nov. 2017.
      • Who was Jacques Cousteau?
    •   by Nico Medina ; illustrated by Dede Putra.(Series: Who was– ?)

 

8 thoughts on “The Important Thing About Jacques Cousteau

  1. I never knew that Jacques Cousteau was a underwater explorer! I think he saw lots of underwater animals! I wonder if he saw sharks!!

    1. Dear Mei,
      He probably saw a lot of sharks, considering how much he was underwater. On his voyage to the Red Sea, he definitely saw a couple sharks.
      Thanks for your comment,
      Arielle

  2. Dear Arielle:
    I like that you used so many sources and put a lot of effort into your post.I also find it interesting that Jacques made so many interesting items!

  3. I like how you put in the pronunciation of Jacques Cousteau. Your blog was really interesting and gave me a lot of information!!!

  4. Dear Chase,
    Yes, he did make a lot of inventions. He was really creative. I think most of his inventions were to help underwater exploration or life underwater.
    Thanks for the comment,
    Arielle

  5. Dear Nico,
    I thought I needed to put pronouncation because it hard to pronounce his name based on the spelling.
    Thanks for the comment,
    Arielle

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