Simone Melchior was the first woman scuba diver and aquanaut, and wife and business partner of undersea explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau.
13 Facts About Simone Melchior
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Simone Melchior led Jacques to the men and money who would build his scuba invention, she helped buy their beloved ship Calypso, saved the ship during a storm, and made sure each exploration achieved its objective.
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Simone Melchior was born on 19 January 1919 in Toulon, France.
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Simone Melchior had two brothers: Maurice, and Simone's twin, Michel.
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Simone Melchior met her future husband, Jacques, at a cocktail party in 1937.
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Simone Melchior was a naval officer of 26 and she was 17.
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In 1942, Simone Melchior's father provided financing and the manufacturing expertise of Emile Gagnan at Air Liquide to build Jacques Cousteau's aqua-lung.
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Simone Melchior was indirectly to hold the key to this significant step in diving history.
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Simone Melchior was present in 1943 at the testing of the prototype for the aqua-lung, in the Marne River outside Paris.
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Simone Melchior sold her family jewels for the Calypso's fuel, and her fur to buy a compass and gyroscope.
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In 1963, Simone Melchior became the world's first female aquanaut by living in Starfish House, an underwater habitat, for the final four days of the Conshelf II project.
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Simone Melchior received a full military funeral, during which her ashes were scattered over the Sea of Monaco.
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On 8 March 2021, the Women Divers Hall of Fame announced on International Women's Day, that a new research grant in the name of the French diver, Simone Melchior-Cousteau was being launched.