Jacques Cousteau Birthday & Fun Facts

Jacques Cousteau Birthday Highlights

Birth Name

Jacques Cousteau

Place Of Birth

Giroud, France

Age

113 years old

Birth Date

June 10 1910

Jacques Cousteau Facts

Child Star?

no

Occupation

Scientist, Researcher, Explorer, Photographer, Filmmaker, Navy Officer.

Education & Qualifications

Parisian College Stanislaus, Ecole Naval (French Naval Academy)

Current Partner

Simon Melchior, Francine Triplet

Children

Philippe Cousteau, Jean-Michel, Pierre-Yves Cousteau, Diane Cousteau

Parents

Elisabeth Cousteau, Daniel Cousteau.

Siblings

Pierre-Antoine

Jacques Cousteau was a French explorer who lived in Gironde from 1910-1997.

Jacques Cousteau was a brilliant personality who researched the sea and various types of life in water as a French navy officer, explorer, scientist, filmmaker, researcher, photographer, author, and conservationist. He co-developed the Aqua-Lung and was an associate member of the Académie Française.

He also pioneered marine conservation. Cousteau released a series of books on his underwater world study, the most popular of which being 'The Silent World: A Story of Undersea Discovery and Adventure,' which was published in 1953. Cousteau also made films, including 'The Silent World', a documentary version of his book that won the Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or in 1956.

What was Jacques Cousteau's net worth?

Jacques might as well be one of the wealthiest oceanographers of all time and one of the most well-known. However, there are no conclusive statistics detailing his net worth.

How much did Jacques Cousteau earn per year?

The annual earnings of Jacques Cousteau are unknown.

How tall was Jacques Cousteau?

Jacques Cousteau is estimated to have stood between 5 ft 8 in (172.7 cm) and 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) tall.

How old was Jacques Cousteau?

He was 87 years old at the time of his death.

Jacques Cousteau was born to Élisabeth and Daniel Cousteau on June 11, 1910, in Saint-André-de-Cubzac, Gironde, France. He had French nationality. Pierre-Antoine was his only sibling. Cousteau finished his basic studies at the Parisian Collège Stanislas. He enrolled in the École Navale (French Naval Academy) in 1930 and qualified as a professional gunnery officer. His tenure in naval aviation was cut short due to an automobile accident in which both of his arms were broken. Cousteau's intentions to become a navy pilot were derailed by accident, so he pursued his fascination for the sea. He regularly began to swim in the Mediterranean Sea throughout his recovery from the accident.

Jacques Cousteau conducted his initial underwater experiments at Toulon while he was engaged on the Condorcet, owing to his colleague Philippe Tailliez, who gave him a few Fernez underwater lenses, forerunners of contemporary swimming goggles, in 1936. Cousteau also served in the French Navy's information department and was dispatched on missions to Japan and Shanghai (1935–1938) as well as the Soviet Union (1939). He went down to examine the seafloor, improvising a set of primitive swimming goggles from aviation pilot lenses. He was so astonished by the beauty of the seafloor and its flora and wildlife that he decided to make diving his whole life's job.

 Who was Jacques Cousteau's partner?

He married his business partner, Simone Melchior, on July 12, 1937, and they had two children, Philippe Cousteau and Jean-Michel. He then married Francine Triplet in 1991, just one year after Simone Melchior died of cancer. Francine had given birth to a son, Pierre-Yves Cousteau, and a daughter, Diane Cousteau.

Francine Cousteau is the current leader of the Cousteau Society and the Cousteau Foundation, carrying on her husband's work.

Best Known For…

Jacques Cousteau created and appeared in a number of television shows, including Cousteau's 'The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau' (1968–76) in the United States. Jacques Cousteau's 'Undersea World' drew the attention of billions of people who wanted to learn about marine species and environments from him. Until Philippe's sad death in a helicopter crash in 1979, he created several documentaries alongside his son Philippe. He founded the French Navy's submarine research group in 1945. He rebuilt an English minesweeper into the Calypso, an oceanographic research vessel, in 1950 and sailed her on multiple voyages with his crew. He began taking annual journeys aboard the Calypso to study the seas in 1951. Cousteau documented his expeditions on his television show 'The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau.' In 1996, the Calypso sank in Singapore's harbor after it was accidentally rammed by a barge.

Cousteau and his team did things that had never been seen before, such as stroking octopuses, swimming with whales, and being dragged along by huge turtles, to increase human awareness of ocean life. He was the first to suggest that cetaceans such as porpoises and whales travel through echolocation.

Cousteau's most well-known work, the television series 'The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau, was created between 1968 and 1976. It aired for over eight seasons, with occasional narration by Cousteau in his distinctive French-accented English. Jacques Cousteau earned the Legion of Honor for his service as a militant spy for the French Resistance and later as a gunnery officer during World War II. During the war, he joined Emile Gagnan, a French engineer, and the two collaborated on the Aqua-Lung, allowing divers to breathe underwater for longer periods. Jacques Cousteau was also instrumental in the development of underwater cameras, a moveable diving saucer for seafloor investigation, and other important tools.

Cousteau performed research on Abu Dhabi's seas for British Petroleum in 1954. Louis Malle was among those accompanying him, and he shot a film of the mission for the corporation. 'The Silent World', which Cousteau co-produced with Malle, received the Academy Award and Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 1956. Cousteau was designated as the director of the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco in 1957. He then created the SP-350, an innovative underwater vehicle capable of reaching a depth of 1148.3 ft (350 m), with the help of Jean Mollard. In 1965, the successful operation was soon duplicated with two vehicles that reached a distance of 1640.4 ft (500 m).

In 1948, Jacques Cousteau embarked on a maiden mission in the Mediterranean onboarding the sloop Élie Monnier, alongside Frédéric Dumas, Philippe Tailliez, Jean Alinat, and scenario writer Marcel Ichac, in between mission of mine-clearing, underwater investigation, and physiological and technological experiments. In addition, the tiny group explored the Roman wreck of Mahdia in Tunisia. It was the first autonomous underwater archeology operation, which paved the way for modern underwater archeology. The Carnets diving footage was brought back by Jacques Cousteau and Marcel Ichac from there.

Conshelf II, an underwater hamlet in the Red Sea, was established in 1963. Jacques Cousteau designed this groundbreaking study effort. Five divers spent a month on Conshelf II to study the psychological and physiological impacts of living underwater.

'Marine Life of the Caribbean' (1984, with Thomas H. Suchanek and James Cribb) is a popular book written by Jacques Cousteau.

Cousteau died of heart failure on June 25, 1997, two weeks following his 87th birthday, in Paris. He was laid to rest at the family vault in Saint-André-de-Cubzac, where he was born and lived. The community respected him by designating the roadway that leads to his birthplace 'Rue Du Commandant Cousteau,' where a memorial plaque was put. In Cousteau's submarine near Monaco's Oceanographic Museum, Cousteau's legacy may be counted as nearly 120 television documentaries, 50 books, and a 300,000-member environmental conservation charity.

Cousteau preferred the label 'oceanographic technologist' for himself. In truth, he was a smart showman, nature lover, and teacher. Many individuals were able to explore the ocean's resources because of his work.

What awards did Jacques Cousteau win?

Jacques Cousteau was included in the UN Environmental Program's Global 500: Roll of Honor of the Environmental Protection in 1988, and he earned the National Geographic Society Centennial Award in 1989. 'World Without Sun', Cousteau's documentary on the establishment of the Conshelf bases, earned him his Third Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1965.

In 1985, he bagged the Presidential Medal of Freedom from the United States. Commander of the Legion of Honour award (1972), Officer of the Order of Maritime Merit awards (1980), Induction into the Television Hall of Fame (1987), Honorary Companion of the Order of Australia (January 26, 1990), Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit (1985) is some of the awards received by this popular oceanographer.

• Jacques belongs to the French nationality.
• Since 1973, the Cousteau Society has been very specific in exploring the oceans, creating protected areas for critically endangered species, and campaigning for the silent world that cannot speak for itself.
• In the popular book 'Le Monde Du Silence', published with Frédéric Dumas, Cousteau popularised oceanic science and the sport of scuba diving.
• Cousteau has always enjoyed being around water but had planned to become a good navy pilot as a teenager.
• In the '70s, Jacques Cousteau took a deep dive into Lake Tahoe.
• While swimming and diving in local lakes, he managed to hold his breath for nearly three minutes.
• He started a global petition campaign to protect mineral exploitation in Antarctica in 1990. His efforts were rewarded when governments from all around the world resolved to safeguard Antarctica from all forms of exploitation.

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