BEYOND MAGELLAN

[Music] this was a voyage of which Magellan never dreamed it was the same seed which bore his frail sailing craft the same winds which swept his ships across the waters the same world to sail with distant continents and strange people's beckoning across the far horizon but the Triton had a mission beyond Magellan to cruise around the world beneath the sea its Hall enclosing a crew which would never see the sky except through a man made till their lifeline to the world above but what sailor in 1519 could have imagined such a strange an awesome vessel has a Triton a submarine powered by the energy of something you can't even see and Adam enough energy and this invisible substance to drive the ship many times around the world without ever a stop for fueling or ever a day lost to calm Magellan would have appreciated that and I think he would have appreciated to the crew of the Triton for all of them were like he sailors with the age-old love for the sea that would tear all horizons our ship was born on the launching waves of General Dynamics electric boat division just a few months ago the same ways which once bore the famed Nautilus escaped another mighty nuclear submarines already on duty with the United States fleet as we begin our dive into the depths of the Atlantic off New London we and our new ship are partners in an epic adventure to attempt the longest submerged cruise in history a voyage which will not end until a whole world has been spanned our lives and safety in the skilled hands of the men who manipulate the controls the Triton like all nuclear submarines represents one of man's great strides forward in harnessing the fantastic force of atomic power we've learned to operate this power source for the same ease our Navy brothers of years ago handled coal and fuel oil but none of us on board ever forgets for a moment that the heart of his ship is a strange and terrible power which is still not entirely known to scientists but Magellan faced some strange forces too and he sailed on this is the story of a hundred and eighty-three modern Magellan's embarked on one of man's great adventures the purpose of the voyage is a well kept secret from the crew most of us think we're on the routine shakedown cruise the our skipper Captain Edward L beech gives us the word we are about to begin a mission which has never been accomplished to travel around the world under the sea along the route of the famed Magellan Magellan never finished his great voyage deathly ahead for the gallant sailor on a far-off primitive Island and who among us does not think for at least one second of the tragic fate of that brave sailor of four centuries ago this was Magellan's route on his round-the-world trip around Cape Horn and across the Pacific after his death in the Philippines surviving crew members continued the trip back to Spain our voyage will follow this route almost exactly if all goes well today we expect to make our first landfall the st. Peter and st. Paul rocks this is home play for us our voyage will begin and end at these barren rocks which Magellan passed so long ago [Music] photographers mate first class Ray Meadows will make the historic motion picture footage of this trip so that we will have a continuing film record of the various strange and distant land Falls which lie ahead what reaches cameras I is a barren and forlorn patch of jagged rocks which jut above the ocean an abandoned and deteriorated lighthouse is on one of the larger st. Paul rocks used in the old days to guide ships into the harbor or warned them away we head south towards the equator there are horrifying experience looms for the younger crew members those wretched creatures known as Polliwogs because they have never crossed the equator to do the honors the full Royal Court assembles king Neptune's Queen looks especially fetching with curly blond hair artificial curves and ruby lips around the cigar with the royal court in session the lowly Polliwogs are sentenced to various cruel punishments [Music] for all of them it is a cutting experience but for the Royal barber it's an opportunity for some real artistry [Music] the ceremonies end with a full crew of loyal shellbacks and a rousing V for victory [Music] long run to Cape Horn begins but there is unexpected trouble cheap radar man junior pool is stricken with a kidney stone condition with a whole world yet to travel so our ship must double back to Uruguay to transfer him we do it without ever raising the deck above sea level so that our ships record of never surfacing will be maintained ahead lies one of the age-old landmarks for sailing men Cape Horn Magellan was the first sailor to pass this Cape and cross into the Pacific Ocean a look through the periscope shows us why it was so difficult for old time seat bearers to weather this famous Cape a strong current surges against the ship yet these are good conditions for Cape Horn it is easy to see how an old wind jammer trying to beat her way around the Cape might find it almost impossible with heavy winds and a strong current both dead against her but the trikey cruising smoothly beneath the sea on the power of two mighty nuclear reactors has no trouble at all and we greet the storied Pacific first seen by bow bore centuries ago the voyage of the Triton around the world will be eagerly greeted by science or here is an unparalleled opportunity to observe and record raw data on one continuous mission across the floors of the great seas [Music] scientists from the US Navy hydrographic office are aboard this ship to make careful observations of scientific phenomena one of the most important of these is gravity we know the Earth's gravity pole varies and this recorder tracks these variations so that they can be marked right at the spot and later analyzed and charted for future travelers over the same area we constantly record the depth of the ocean floor and thus we come across a great buried Mountain which thrusts its jagged peak 9,000 feet toward the surface we named it Mount Triton and record its data along with other depths on a chart so that future ships may be secured [Music] Magellan sailing blindly through strange and Uncharted Seas passed by Easter Island and never saw it thus he missed the badly needed food and provisions available on this beautiful little island [Music] our periscope can almost pick out a statue erected by the ancient tribes which once lived on this island Easter Island contains fascinating vestiges of a lost Polynesian civilization statues monuments and ancient shelter still stand as a reminder of a great culture which once flourished on this small volcanic isle we leave Easter Island and pass onto the broad expanse of the Pacific to the north lies our newest state Hawaii and the sailors of the Triton celebrate their nearness to the romantic islands with an old-time luau for the occasion we dawn colorful aloha shirts and fill our plates with exotic Hawaiian specialties of all kinds the party is taught by some romantic island music played on a guitar no hula girls 350 feet beneath the ocean but we can dream can't we but there are memories of combat in this area too and they're brought home to us again as we pass near the place where the first Triton was lost in action during World War two our skipper captain beach was on another submarine in the same general area and underwent the same depth charge attack which fatally struck the Triton in memory of the brave men who lost their lives that day a thousand miles from their homes and deep beneath the ocean we hold a memorial service for the old Triton spell in the place of honor they that go down to the sea in ships that do business in great waters these is the works of the Lord and His wonders in the deep a world to sail and no place to go the Triton is the largest submarine in the world a floating city under the sea with the most modern equipment and conveniences and yet on a long trip the time seems to move slowly that's why the crew quickly learns new hobbies [Music] the pacific blue and sunny above us is only a warm world of silence as we sail on toward our next landfall Guam and our captain in the conning tower brings the island into sight on his periscope and relays the bearings of familiar landmarks for the navigators to chart as we slow down to take a look at the island in the engine room the throttle man on watch closes the main propulsion valve and slows the mighty engines as we prepare to take a look at WOM for almost every Navy man Guam is a familiar base an island recaptured from the enemy's hands in World War two after bitter fighting to become one of America's great naval bases but as we lie outside the harbor unseen by those ashore one sailor takes a look through the periscope and gets an unforgettable thrill WOM is the birthplace of Edward Carlito who has not seen his family since 1946 through the periscope he can see the home which was built with the help of money he sent his family when the great voyage of the Triton is recalled surely there will be an ironic footnote about the Sailor who came home after 14 years and then came no closer than a mile offshore and underwater at that [Music] now Guam lies behind us and in the path of Magellan we head south west toward the islands where the brave Explorer met his death our mighty twin reactor send power to the turbines as our ship plows on it's suspenseful Odyssey a submarine sails in three dimensions Plainsman working with the ballast control chief must maintain the ship on an even trim so that she sails smoothly forward as the sea floor and other conditions warrant we change depths from time to time aware that this unique submarine can go much deeper than any World War two submarine just how deep is a secret we'll keep to ourselves [Music] we are approaching Surigao straight in the Philippines as part of our Navy hydrographic office project we have been taking samples of the various bodies of water through which we passed during this voyage but here in sir Kyle Strait there is a special reason for collecting water this sample is going to be sent to Admiral Jesse P Ohlendorf retired Admiral oldendorp had command of the squadron of battleships which crossed the T at the Battle of Tsugaru Strait giving back the wounds those same warships had received at Pearl Harbor on the day of the war began so here in addition to measuring the density temperature and other characteristics of the water we think we can detect streaks of rust from old and long sunk Japanese warship hulls and we're sure Admiral Alden Dorf will see them too when we send him this special bottle above us and then our peaceful Straits a picturesque philippine sail boats cuts across the water our track leads us down Surikov straight then northward to Mactan Island macton Island was the last port of call for Magellan and as our captain writes the report of this trip which will be valuable to historians [Music] and then prepares a very special slip of paper to be cast adrift in this place he must be remembering Magellan whom we have at writing salute with this message hail noble captain it is done again [Music] having survived countless dangers hunger thirst and extreme privation Magellan had successfully brought his ships through unknown and uncharted waters to these islands the natives of Cebu greeted him as a new God and Magellan attempted to convert them into Christians in this brave enterprise he went to macton island and there met his death in the battle was primitive tribesmen armed with poisoned Spears the bottle with our special slip will drift onto the shores of this island at this historic moment we of the Triton can see the small monument erected on macton Island to the eternal glory of Magellan [Music] 400 years passed on a blur and we are in the 20th century as a plane flies by giving our crew a chance to train in one of the missions for which the Triton was built ere early warning the Triton is unique among America's nuclear submarines this defense mission is to provide our nation with a radar picket ship which can be stationed thousands of miles from our coastlines to detect enemy aircraft or ships long before they reach our shores the whole ship is designed to carry these men and equipment who scan the skies and ocean ceaselessly for any sign of enemy attack unseen eyes which never tire never close southward through the Makassar Strait we sail towards Lombok Strait gateway to the Indian Ocean our navigators plotting our course has the aid of sends a unique inertial guidance system developed for use in missiles and submarines like the Triton which must stay submerged for months this device will make life a little easier for our hard-working navigators [Music] as we pass through the Strait is a beautiful island of Bali a spectacular volcanic mountain rising from the ocean's depths bright with green and lovely valleys then our skipper swings a periscope around for a look at the other side of Lombok straight on the eastern side of the street there's another mountain even higher than Mount Bali Mount Rinjani another spectacular peak with beautiful vistas of rock and greenery amid the crags in peace across the strait a native sailboat takes the breeze the sight of this boat above water reminds us that we have now traveled almost twenty thousand miles and still have thousands of miles to sail [Music] day after day life goes on our exercise is limited to tucking our beards which by now should be rivaling those of Magellan's men or keeping our hands and minds occupied by building plane models tooling leather belts or sculpturing play heads is it a good likeness the chief seems to think so good Navy chow is available and our chefs do a good job in a compact and efficient galley in a light hemmed into small quarters one thing our crew can do big is eat and they do a naval psychologist dr. Benjamin white brew is on board to study the sailors reactions carefully throughout the trip [Music] his findings will have important significance for the US Navy which is now building a fleet of ballistic missile submarines which can be sent anywhere in the world to launch long-range missiles at an aggressor [Music] these fleet ballistic missile submarines may be required to stay submerged for months at a time to avoid detection and one of the things the Navy hopes to find from our trip is how the crew would be able to bear the months of isolation in the submarines hull on a long voyage the results so far have been encouraging thanks to the many conveniences of the modern nuclear submarine which make living underwater as simple and convenient as possible [Music] as part of the study we conduct a seal ship test a test which has vital meaning in the space age for a seal submarine is in effect a space ship in orbit around the world depending on its own facilities for the oxygen and supplies to sustain the life of its crew thus for a few weeks our ship operating alone in liquid space will serve as a unique research vehicle a living experiment to help speed the day when man will conquer the infinities of space which lie beyond our planet [Music] during this test oxygen will be supplied to us by a unique method special candles consisting of a mixture of sodium chlorate and powdered iron produce oxygen when they are burned [Music] these candles greatly increase the capability of a submarine to remain submerged for long periods of time [Music] a seal ship test is quite an operation all around because you can't take chances of polluted air that's why throughout the long voyage the air is constantly checked for impurities but during the seal ship tests of course the measurements become even more significant dr. James Stark our medical officer uses an instrument known as the Dwyer analyzer to measure the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere he pumps a sample of air into a chemical in the tube which absorbed the co2 so that it can be measured these measurements are recorded to be checked against the tolerance ratio of co2 in the air meanwhile the assistant uses the Beckman atmosphere analyzer which draws in air from every compartment of the ship this instrument senses and measures chemical properties in the atmosphere and gives us a compartment by compartment analysis of the purity of the air these measurements are converted on a slide rule and two percentages so that we know what proportion of each gas is included in our atmosphere we then can tell whether the air is chemically pure for human intake thus the air we breathe is constantly watched recorded and plotted every minute of every day beneath the sea [Music] fifty days at sea and twenty three thousand miles behind us and now we turn third base and run for home the Cape of Good Hope is our last major turning point as we return once again to the Atlantic Ocean from which we began this great voyage but we have thousands of miles to go with men who have been pent up for a long long time and some signs of fatigue or showing [Music] at such a time a sailor likes to look heavenward for help and that is why as we cruise beneath the sight of all except God church attendance rises as we make our final run this Chapel is not exactly a cathedral a TV set a stretcher in a bag of potatoes make an unusual backdrop for the words of the Bible but we think he will understand up periscope visit orful cry today we're about to see the st. Peter Paul rocks the landfall which will mark the successful completion of the voyage Magellan could never have dreamed [Music] twenty six thousand seven hundred twenty three nautical miles 61 days beneath the surface an epic adventure of the sea to rank with all the great voyages of man [Music] and the voyage has a more current result which is just as pleasing to us in our military leaders our entire voyage around the world has been undetected by any form of radar sonar or other detection device proof that the nuclear submarine can go anywhere in the world and elude the enemy's defenses in time of war on our way home we see the Canary Islands in the city of Santa Cruz this periscope footage shows the last city of the old world seen by Magellan [Music] what a cruise he embarked on into waters which had never been sailed or charted having sailed the same route underwater we appreciate more than ever the enormous daring and spirit of the Ancient Mariner and his memory is with the captain and shall be with all of us who sailed the Triton forever as the captain signed special cashy's as permanent mementos of our world adventure [Music] [Applause] on the gray day in New London our spirits are bright in spite of the rainy weather our ship approaches the dock after a record-breaking cruise which removed us from our families for three long months [Music] there been nine new babies born while we were away most of them along with the rest of the children are ready to hoop it up for Dad when he touches Shore there's an air of excitement as the crowd waits for the famous ship to touch dock almost three months from the day it slipped off toward the horizon [Applause] we of the crew know this is an historic occasion and as we stand in our dress uniforms we feel quite proud of the fact that we rode the Triton on its greatest voyage there are high-ranking officers from Washington to greet us speeches to be made honors to be awarded [Music] but the greeting that means the most is the hug of your wife the reunion with your family the pictures to be shown and the thrill of showing off our beards to some very impressed son and as the nation responds to the news of our trip captain beach our skipper represents us at a ceremony in the White House as leaders like Admiral rickover chief of the naval reactors branch look on President Eisenhower honors our ship for the Presidential Unit Citation and presents the Legion of Merit to captain beech as the nation thanks the men who sailed beyond Magellan and showed the world the power and versatility of the Atomic Age Navy [Music] a voyage for history to remember begun and competed in the United States man-of-war cruising in the free ocean which is her natural habitat and which she and her sisters will ever defend [Music]