Jacques Cousteau

Hello. My name is Jacques Cousteau, and I want to tell you about my amazing life exploring the deep blue sea. I was born in a beautiful country called France on June 11th, 1910. When I was a boy, I was not just interested in swimming. I was completely fascinated by water and everything in it. I also loved machines and movies. I was always taking things apart to see how they worked and putting them back together again. My father gave me my very first movie camera, and I carried it everywhere. I loved making films about my family and friends. But whenever I looked at the big, wide ocean, I felt a pull. It was like a giant secret just waiting to be discovered. I would swim on the surface and wonder, "What amazing creatures are swimming right below me?". The water was like a silent, blue world, and I dreamed of finding a way to unlock its mysteries.

As I grew up, my dream of exploring underwater grew bigger and bigger. But there was a big problem. People can’t breathe underwater. We could only hold our breath for a minute or two before having to come up for air. That was not nearly enough time to see all the wonders I knew were down there. I thought, "If only I could breathe like a fish.". So, I decided to solve the problem. I worked with my good friend, an engineer named Émile Gagnan. Together, we tinkered and tested and built something new. In 1943, we did it. We invented a special machine that we called the Aqua-Lung. It let us carry air on our backs so we could breathe underwater for a long, long time. We could finally swim freely, just like the fish. My adventures took a giant leap forward in 1950 when I got my amazing ship, the Calypso. It was not just a boat; it was my home, my laboratory, and my ticket to explore oceans all over the world. My wonderful wife, Simone, was always by my side. She was an expert diver and the heart of our crew, often called the "Shepherdess of the Calypso" because she took care of everyone.

With my Aqua-Lung and my ship Calypso, I could finally see the secret world I had always dreamed of. It was more beautiful than I ever imagined. There were forests of coral in every color of the rainbow, fish that shimmered like jewels, and giant, gentle whales that sang songs in the deep. I knew I could not keep this amazing world to myself. I had to share it. So, I used my movie cameras to film everything I saw. I made movies and television shows to bring the ocean's secrets into people's homes, so everyone could fall in love with it just like I had. But my journeys also showed me something sad. I saw that our oceans were in trouble and needed our help. This inspired me to start a group called The Cousteau Society in 1973 to teach people how to protect our blue planet. I passed away on June 25th, 1997, but my mission lives on. The ocean connects all of us, and we must all be its guardians. The adventure of discovery is waiting for you, too.