' \ 



that would drive a steam-propulsion system. Rickover's dream : a 

 submarine that could stay submerged indefinitely because its fires 

 were nuclear, not chemical, and so did not depend on outside air; 

 and a craft which would run on a few pounds of fuel as opposed to 

 tens of thousands of gallons of Diesel oil. And so the Nautilus was 

 born. Its performance, compared with conventional submarines, 

 was remarkable. 



Commander Anderson, a devoted submariner, had served during 

 World War II. A married man with children, he was hand-picked 

 to command this important vessel of the United States Navy. When 

 in 19^7 he took command he was fairly certain that one day soon 

 he would be going to the North Pole - but he was far less certain 

 about what he would find when it came time for him to nose his 

 way beneath the ice. 



The Nautilus was tailor-made for such a venture. Unlike earUer 

 expeditions - Nansen's in the Fram, for example - it would be 

 possible for the crew of the Nautilus to gUde in warmth and com- 

 fort beneath the irregular surface of the ice, coming up if necessary 

 in various gaps that appear from time to time. On the other hand 

 it is difficult to navigate in high latitudes. Magnetic compass needles 

 swing erratically when they are near the Magnetic Pole. When I was 

 in Greenland our compasses pointed southwest. Gyrocompasses 

 are much more reliable, but even they can lose their stability. Al- 

 though it would be possible, in theory, for the submarine to surface 

 to discover its position from astronomical observations, or from 

 wireless signals, what if there were no convenient hole in the ice 

 when one was needed? 



Fitted with the most up-to-date gyrocompass, the Mark 19, the 

 Nautilus sailed on August 19, 1957, under conditions of high 

 security, bound for the ice pack between Greenland and Spitsber- 

 gen. Commander Anderson's orders from Rear Admiral Charles 

 W. Wilkins read: "At discretion proceed under the ice to the 

 vicinity of 85°N. latitude and return." This meant a journey of 

 240 miles under ice. On August 27, when they were in the vicinity 

 of Iceland, Commander Anderson addressed his crew: "Men. This 

 is the Captain. This is going to be one hell of an interesting cruise 

 from now on, particularly starting about Saturday. I hope there is 

 no one on board who thinks it will be grim or in any way unsafe. 

 If I thought for one moment we might even halfway jeopardize 

 this magnificent ship, or her magnificent crew, I would turn around 

 and head for port right now." The Executive Officer later replied 

 for the crew : "Captain, they are as ready as anyone could ever be. 

 They will go anywhere with you." 



On its way to the pack ice, the ship developed some difficulties. 

 For example, the cOg scrubber, which keeps ♦'he carbon dioxide to 

 a non-toxic level, was not working too well. But generally life was 

 comfortable, much more comfortable than on the average sub- 

 marine. There was a huge mess room, excellent food, a large library 

 of films and books, a Coca-Cola machine, and even a jukebox. As 

 Commander Anderson said, "This, I thought, is the way to explore 

 the Arctic!" 



After one or two trial dives under the ice to test the equipment, 

 Anderson was convinced that all was well. At 8 p.m. September i, 

 the Nautilus nosed under the ice and set a course due north. Through 

 the periscope Anderson could see the ice. H? wrote: "I turned the 



Ai?'^ 



^.<'-^N 



Captain Nemo takes a sun shot aboard the 

 Nautilus of Jules Verne's imagination. There 

 are remarl<able simiiarities between Captain 

 Nemo's Nautilus and that of Commander 

 Anderson. The iength of the real Nautilus 

 is 320 feet compared with 282 feet for Nemo's 

 submarine; diameter of 28 feet (real Nautilusj 

 compared with 26 feet. Each ship was equipped 

 with an extensive library, and Nemo's 

 Nautilus was powered by electricity 

 generated from sea water, which enabled it 

 to remain submerged for long periods. 



67 



