fromWorld History Encyclopedia
2 weeks agoCousteau's Calypso: The World's Most Famous Research Ship
The Calypso, then known only as BYMS-26, was launched in Seattle, Washington, in 1942. The ship served admirably as a minesweeper in the British Royal Navy during WWII under the designation J-826. After the war, the ship endured a less-than-glamorous stint ferrying passengers and cars between Malta and Gozo. At least it received a new name: Calypso, after the figure in Greek mythology who kept the shipwrecked hero Odysseus enraptured for seven years with vague promises of immortality.
History
