United States Naval Undersea Museum facts for kids
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| Established | 1995 |
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| Location | Keyport, Washington |
| Type | Maritime museum |
The United States Naval Undersea Museum is a fascinating museum located in Keyport, Washington. It's one of ten special Navy museums managed by the Naval History & Heritage Command. This museum is right next to a part of the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, which is a Navy research place.
Museum History and Purpose
The Naval Undersea Museum Foundation is a group that helps the museum. It started in 1980. Thanks to their efforts to raise money, the Naval Undersea Museum opened its doors in 1995.
This museum brings together naval history, amazing undersea technology, and marine science. The building has over 20,000 square feet (1,900 m2) of exhibits. It holds the largest collection of naval undersea history and science items in the United States. The museum also has a research library with more than 6,500 books. These books help explain the exhibits and offer lots of information about undersea history and how things work underwater. The library even has reports from World War II submarine patrols.
The Foundation also publishes a magazine called Undersea Quarterly. They also support the Naval Undersea Museum Store. Other learning programs are supported by the Foundation. They work with the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Keyport to do this.
Exploring the Museum's Collection
The museum's exhibits help you learn about the ocean environment. You can also discover how undersea weapons have changed over time. There are displays about U.S. submarines and how Navy divers work.
Some cool items you can see include:
- U.S. torpedoes, from old designs to modern ones like the Mk 48.
- A mine from the Civil War era.
- Parts from real submarines, like torpedo tubes from the USS Tecumseh.
- A pretend submarine control room. This room uses actual equipment from the USS Greenling submarine.
Other amazing things in the museum are:
- The 55-ton "sail" (the top part) of a nuclear submarine called USS Sturgeon.
- Deep-sea submersibles named Trieste II and Mystic.
- A Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV). This vehicle was used in the movie The Hunt for Red October.
- A recreated control room from the USS Greenling. It uses the real equipment from the submarine when it was taken out of service.
The museum's main topics include:
- The ocean environment.
- Different types of torpedoes.
- How naval mines are used in warfare.
- The technology behind submarines.
- Various types of diving equipment.
See also
- U.S. Navy Museum
- List of maritime museums in the United States
- Naval Undersea Warfare Center
