View source for RV Calypso

{{short description|Jacques Cousteau's oceanographic research ship}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image="Calypso" - Montreal, 1980.jpg
|Ship caption= The research vessel ''Calypso'' of Jacques Cousteau arriving in Montreal on 30 August 1980
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header  =
|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}}
|Ship class   =
* [[BYMS-class minesweeper|British yard minesweeper]]
* Mark 1 class motor minesweeper
|Ship name    = '''HMS ''J-826'''''
|Ship ordered =
|Ship awarded =
|Ship builder = [[Ballard Marine Railway Company]], [[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]], United States
|Ship laid down      = 12 August 1941
|Ship launched       = 21 March 1942
|Ship commissioned   = February 1943
|Ship recommissioned = '''''BYMS-2026''''' (1944)
|Ship decommissioned = 1946
|Ship renamed        = '''''Calypso G''''' (1949)
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header = title
|Ship country        = France
|Ship flag           = {{shipboxflag|France|naval}}
|Ship owner          = Thomas Guinness
|Ship operator       = Compagnie Océanographique Française, Nice
|Ship refit          = For Cousteau (1951)
|Ship renamed        = '''''Calypso''''' (1950)
|Ship reclassified   = [[Research vessel]]
|Ship fate           = Sunk and raised (1996)
|Ship status         = Being refurbished under the direction of the [[Cousteau Society]]
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Header caption=<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.seasabres.com/Safty-education/Education/other/Calypso.htm |title=Sea Sabres: The Calypso: The stories she could tell! |date=23 July 2003 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303203609/http://www.seasabres.com/Safty-education/Education/other/Calypso.htm |archive-date=March 3, 2016 }}</ref>
|Ship displacement = 360 tons
|Ship tonnage  = {{GRT|294}}
|Ship length   = {{convert|139|ft|abbr=on}} (43 meters, according to another source)<ref name='lepoint2013'>{{cite news |url=http://www.lepoint.fr/science/une-petition-en-ligne-mise-en-place-pour-sauver-la-calypso-du-commandant-cousteau-07-10-2013-1740024_25.php | title= Une pétition pour "sauver" la Calypso du commandant Cousteau |language=fr | work=Le Point |agency=Agence France Presse| date=7 October 2013 |access-date=5 April 2016}}</ref>
|Ship beam     = {{convert|25|ft|abbr=on}}
|Ship height   =
|Ship draft    = {{convert|10|ft|abbr=on}}
|Ship decks    = Three
|Ship ice class=
|Ship power    = 2 × {{convert|580|hp|abbr=on}} 8-cylinder [[Electro-Motive Diesel|General Motors]] diesel engines
|Ship propulsion= Twin screw
|Ship speed    = {{convert|10|kn}}
|Ship capacity =
|Ship crew     = 27 in captain's quarters, 6&nbsp;staterooms and crew quarters
|Ship notes    =
* Photo and science labs
* Underwater observation chamber
* Helicopter landing pad
* Yumbo 3-ton hydraulic crane
* Minisub storage hold
}}
|}
'''RV ''Calypso''''' is a former British [[Royal Navy]] [[minesweeper]] converted into a [[research vessel]] for the [[Oceanography|oceanographic]] researcher [[Jacques Cousteau]], equipped with a mobile laboratory for underwater field research. She was severely damaged in 1996 and was planned to undergo a complete refurbishment in 2009–2011 that has not been accomplished. The ship is named after the Greek mythological figure [[Calypso (mythology)|Calypso]].

==World War II British minesweeper (1941–1947)==
''Calypso'' was originally a [[minesweeper (ship)|minesweeper]] built by the [[Ballard Marine Railway Company]] of [[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]], United States for the United States Navy for loan to the British Royal Navy under [[lend-lease]]. A wooden-hulled vessel, she is built of [[Douglas fir|Oregon pine]].<ref name="row">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2003/jul/28/france.jonhenley |title=Cousteau family row may sink his ark; Watery grave awaits famous vessel in dispute over its future |first=Jon |last=Henley |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=28 July 2003 |access-date=5 April 2016}}</ref>

She was a [[BYMS-class minesweeper|British yard minesweeper (BYMS) Mark&nbsp;1 class motor minesweeper]], [[Keel laying|laid down]] on 12 August 1941 with yard designation ''BYMS-26'' and [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] on 21 March 1942. She was [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] into the Royal Navy in February 1943 as '''HMS ''J-826''''' and assigned to active service in the [[Mediterranean Sea]], based in [[Malta]], and was reclassified as '''BYMS-2026''' in 1944. Following the end of [[World War II]], she was [[Ship decommissioning|decommissioned]] in July 1946 and laid up at Malta. On 1 August 1947 she was formally handed back to the US Navy and then struck from the US Naval Register, remaining in lay-up.<ref name=Ferry>{{cite book |last1= Somner |first1=Graeme |year=1982 |title=Ferry Malta |pages=11–12, 31|publisher= World Ship Society |location=Kendal |isbn=0-905617-19-3}}</ref>

==Maltese ferry (1949–1950)==
In May 1949 she was bought by Joseph Gasan of Malta, who had secured the mail contract on the [[ferry]] route between [[Marfa, Malta|Marfa]], in the north of Malta, and [[Mġarr, Gozo]], in the south of Malta, in 1947.<ref name=Ferry />  She was converted to a ferry and renamed ''Calypso G'' after the [[nymph]] [[Calypso (mythology)|Calypso]], whose island of [[Ogygia]] was mythically associated with Gozo, entering service in March 1950.  After only four months on the route, Gasan received an attractive offer and sold her.<ref name=Ferry />

==Jacques Cousteau's ''Calypso'' (1950–1997)==
[[File:Etrave.JPG|thumb|left|[[Bulbous bow]] observation chamber of ''Calypso'']]

The British millionaire and former [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] (MP), [[Thomas Loel Guinness]] bought ''Calypso'' in July 1950.<ref>{{Cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CxYqSwCMtqsC&q=Loel+Guinness+bought+Calypso+in+July+1950&pg=PT55 |title = Jacques Cousteau: A Life Under the Sea |isbn = 9781402760587 |last1 = Olmstead |first1 = Kathleen |year = 2008|publisher = Sterling Publishing Company }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D-KtCgd4SZwC&q=Guinness+Calypso+1950+one+franc |title = Le nouvel Economiste |language=fr |year = 1996}}</ref> He leased her to Cousteau for a symbolic one [[French franc|franc]] a year. He had two conditions: that Cousteau never ask him for money and that he never reveal his identity, which only came out after Cousteau's death. Cousteau restructured and transformed the ship into an expedition vessel and support base for [[Underwater diving|diving]], filming and oceanographic research. One of the more unusual expeditions involving the vessel was a survey of Abu Dhabi waters conducted by Cousteau on behalf of [[BP|British Petroleum]] (BP) in 1954{{snd}} the first and last time it was used for an oil survey.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Morton |first1=Michael Quentin |title=Calypso in the Arabian Gulf: Jacques Cousteau's Undersea Survey of 1954 |journal=Liwa |date=June 2015 |volume=5 |issue=9 |pages=3–28 |url=https://www.academia.edu/13056568 |access-date=17 August 2016}}</ref>

''Calypso'' carried advanced equipment, including one- and two-man mini submarines developed by Cousteau, [[SP-350 Denise|diving saucers]], and [[Diver Propulsion Vehicle|underwater scooters]]. The ship was also fitted with a see-through "nose" and an observation chamber {{convert|3|m}} below the waterline, and was modified to house scientific equipment and a helicopter pad. The [[Calypso (camera)|Calypso underwater camera]] is named after this ship.

On 8 January 1996, a [[barge]] accidentally rammed ''Calypso'' and sank her in the port of [[Singapore]]. On 16 January, she was raised by a {{convert|230|ft|m|adj=on}} crane, patched, and pumped dry before being put in a shipyard.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www-cgi.cnn.com/WORLD/Newsbriefs/9601/01-25/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000901061500/http://www-cgi.cnn.com/WORLD/Newsbriefs/9601/01-25/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=1 September 2000 |title=Cousteau's Calypso rescued in Singapore |work=CNN |date=25 January 1996 |access-date=5 April 2016 }}</ref>

==Restoration (1997–present)==
[[File:Calypso.2-April-1999.jpg|thumb|''Calypso'' at La Rochelle (1999)]]
[[File:Calypso sous hangar à Concarneau 03.jpeg|thumb|''Calypso''{{'}}s bow extending from the Piriou shipyard's hangar in which she was stored (January 2014)]]

''Calypso'' was later towed to the Maritime Museum of [[La Rochelle]] in 1998 to be an exhibit.

A legal dispute between  Jacques Cousteau's widow, [[Francine Cousteau]], and Loel Guinness, the grandson of the original owner, delayed restoration work. During this time the city of La Rochelle withdrew its funding for the restoration. ''Calypso'' remained in disrepair.<ref name="row"/>

In 2002, [[Alexandra Cousteau]], Cousteau's granddaughter from his first marriage, tried to become involved in the restoration. The [[Cousteau Society]], controlled by Francine Cousteau, reportedly spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to defend Francine's exclusive use of the name and to prevent Alexandra's participation in the restoration of ''Calypso''.{{citation needed|date=May 2021}}

In 2006 Loel Guinness transferred ownership of ''Calypso'' to the Cousteau Society for the sum of one euro. In October 2007 the ship was {{clarify span|moved to [[Concarneau]] where restoration|date=November 2020}} began at the Piriou Shipyard.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.lemonde.fr/web/depeche/0,14-0,39-32770868@7-50,0.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20131129092302/http://www.lemonde.fr/web/depeche/0,14-0,39-32770868@7-50,0.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 November 2013 |title=La Calypso a quitté La Rochelle jeudi matin pour être restaurée à Concarneau |language=fr |newspaper=[[Le Monde]] |date=11 October 2007}}</ref> Work on ''Calypso'' stopped in 2009 because of the non-payment of bills by Francine Cousteau.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ouest-france.fr/region/bretagne_detail_-La-Calypso-de-Cousteau-dans-une-mauvaise-passe-_8619-1239842_actu.Htm |title=La Calypso de Cousteau dans une mauvaise passe |language=fr |publisher=[[Ouest France]] |first=Dominique |last=Mesgouez |date=2 February 2010 |access-date=5 April 2016}}</ref> Piriou claimed to be owed €850,000 for work already done. The Cousteau Society counter-sued for defective work. In 2015 a French court ordered Francine Cousteau to settle outstanding yard bills and remove ''Calypso'' from a [[Brittany]] shipyard or allow the shipyard to sell the vessel.<ref>{{cite news |title=French shipyard threatens to sell Jacques Cousteau's boat |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/12/french-shipyard-threatens-sell-jacques-cousteau-boat-calypso |access-date=9 July 2017 |work=The Guardian |date=12 March 2015}}</ref>

The Cousteau Society announced in 2016 that a solution had been found to allow the ship to return to service with new engines.<ref>{{cite web |title=Calypso set to sail again! |url=http://www.cousteau.org/calypso-set-to-sail-again/ |publisher=Cousteau Society |access-date=8 January 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160107015811/http://www.cousteau.org/calypso-set-to-sail-again/ |archive-date=7 January 2016}}</ref> In 2017 a fire damaged new wooden parts of the Calypso at a shipyard near Istanbul, Turkey, where her refitting had been in progress.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cousteau.org/english/cousteau---calypso-subit-un-sinistre_cd2_166.html |title=Fire on Cousteau's Calypso |website=www.cousteau.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181023080248/https://www.cousteau.org/english/cousteau---calypso-subit-un-sinistre_cd2_166.html |archive-date=2018-10-23}}</ref>

==''Calypso'' in popular culture==
* ''Calypso'' was the main ship in all three feature documentary films that Cousteau directed in his career: ''[[The Silent World]]'' (1956, awarded with the [[Academy Award for Documentary Feature]] and the 1956 [[Palme d'Or]]), ''[[World Without Sun]]'' (1964, which also won the Academy Award for Documentary Feature) and ''[[Voyage to the Edge of the World]]'' (1976).
* [[John Denver]] wrote a 1975 hit song "[[Calypso (John Denver song)|Calypso]]" as a tribute to ''Calypso'' and her crew. Additionally, he gave all the royalties for the song to the Cousteau Society.
* [[Jean Michel Jarre]] wrote a three part composition in tribute to the ship included on the album ''[[Waiting for Cousteau]]'' (1990).
* American heavy metal band [[GWAR]] wrote a song entitled "Je M'Appelle J. Cousteau", which was featured on their album ''[[Hell-O]]'', originally released in 1988.  It is not entirely clear whether this song is in tribute or slander, but the song is entirely about Jacques Cousteau and his ship ''Calypso''.
* The [[Captain's yacht]] of the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)|USS ''Enterprise-D'']], on ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'', was named ''Calypso'' by actor [[Patrick Stewart]]. He also gave the name ''Cousteau'' to the captain's yacht of the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E)|USS ''Enterprise-E'']] in homage to the ''Calypso''{{'}}s famous former captain.
* [[Wes Anderson]] directed a film [[Homage (arts)|homage]] of Jacques Cousteau's life called ''[[The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou]]''. In the movie, Zissou travels the seas in a ship called ''Belafonte''. This is an oblique reference to Jacques Cousteau's ship ''Calypso''. [[Harry Belafonte]] is a noted musician who is arguably the best known exponent of [[calypso music]]; his 1956 album ''[[Calypso (album)|Calypso]]'' is the first LP record to sell one million copies. While in the film, ''Belafonte'' is described as a "long-range sub-hunter", like ''Calypso'' she was also a former British minesweeper, the Ton-class {{HMS|Packington}}.
* [[NASA]] astronaut [[Sunita Williams]] bestowed the name ''Calypso'' on the third [[Boeing Starliner]] space capsule built for the [[Commercial Crew Program]] after the ship.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/starliner-returns-to-earth-with-a-new-name-calypso|title=Starliner Returns to Earth With a New Name: Calypso|first=Brian|last=Dunbar|date=December 22, 2019|publisher=NASA}}</ref>
* The character Rebecca from the television series ''[[Theodore Tugboat]]'' is based on ''Calypso''.

==See also==
{{Portal|Underwater diving}}
* {{ship||Alcyone|1985 ship|2}} for Cousteau's experimental turbosail ship.
* [[Boeing Starliner Calypso|Boeing Starliner ''Calypso'']], [[Boeing Starliner]] space capsule 
* {{HMS|Calypso}} for the Royal Navy ships of the same name.
* [[SP-350 Denise|SP-350 ''Denise'']] first diving saucer
* ''[[USS YMS-328|Wild Goose]]'', a private yacht belonging to John Wayne, formerly YMS-328, a sistership of ''Calypso''.
* [[YMS-1-class minesweeper]] of the U.S. Navy, of which the BYMS was a subclass.

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Calypso (ship, 1943)}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150720114926/http://www.cousteau.org/who/calypso/ ''Calypso'' page] from the Cousteau Society.
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/11/192026.htm BYMS-26]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100413220221/http://shipbuildinghistory.com/history/smallships/yms.htm WWII Construction Records Yard Minesweepers (YMS)]
* Miquel Pontes – "El ''Calypso'': Historia de un mito" in ''Aquanet'' 67, 2005 [http://marenostrum.org/download/aquanet/2005/aquanet-67.pdf] ([[PDF|.PDF file]])
* [http://www.piriou.fr/ Chantiers Piriou, restoration of the ''Calypso'']
* [http://www.passion-calypso.com/ Passion ''Calypso'', including history and photos of the ship's restoration (in French)]
*[https://www.cousteau.org/english/cousteau--mise-a-jour-concernant-calypso_cd2_555.html Update regarding Calypso's refitting]

{{1996 shipwrecks}}
{{Underwater diving|hisdiv}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Calypso}}
[[Category:Research vessels of France]]
[[Category:Museum ships in France]]
[[Category:BYMS-class minesweepers]]
[[Category:World War II minesweepers of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Fisheries science]]
[[Category:Ships built in Seattle]]
[[Category:1942 ships]]
[[Category:Jacques Cousteau]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1996]]