Produced by Sperry Autonetics, this film shows the historic 1958 voyage of the world’s first nuclear powered submarine, the USS Nautilus (SSN-571) under the North Pole. This historic voyage, known as Operation Sunshine, heralded a new stage of the Cold War, in which Soviet and American submarines would vie for control of the strategically critical polar regions. Sperry Autonetics made the top secret inertial guidance system that allowed Nautilus to make the voyage without surfacing to conduct navigational sightings of the sun or stars.
Operation Sunshine was a scientific expedition conducted by the U.S. Navy in the summer of 1958. A crew of just over 100 sailors piloted the USS Nautilus (SSN-571) under the North Pole. The Nautilus was chosen for the mission because its nuclear reactor allowed it to remain submerged longer than a conventional submarine. The mission was completed successfully on August 3, 1958 when the Nautilus and her crew crossed under the North Pole.
It was not enough that the U.S. had just built a nuclear submarine, the Nautilus had to be tested to show how much more advanced the technology was. Ideas were bounced around including the Nautilus and the Skate (SSN-578) to complete a submerged lap around the Earth. It wasn’t until William Anderson (Captain of the Nautilus) suggested the submerged trip under the North Pole that it was even considered.
The Nautilus departed from Groton on August 19, 1957 for her first attempt at sailing under the Pole but it was unsuccessful because of the ice being too deep. Another attempt was not made until the next summer. On July 23, 1958, the Nautilus left the Pearl Harbor naval base heading north towards the Bering Straight. She and her crew crossed under the pole at 2315 on August 3 and continued on for four more days until exiting from under the polar ice (Naval History) where Captain Anderson radioed to President Eisenhower “Nautilus 90 North”.
Even the second attempt did not go without issues, the crew having to deal with large amounts of ice blockage as well as mechanical failures aboard the sub. The hope was that the mission was timed to where the ice levels in the Arctic would be at their lowest making it easier to navigate through the waters under the pole without hitting the bottom or the top with the periscope. The expedition was also used as a sort of testing ground for not only the sub but it was an opportunity for the Navy to experiment with different types of navigational equipment.
Normally a ship or small craft relies on a magnetic compass which works by comparing your position to magnetic north. One major flaw with magnetic compasses is that magnetic north is not exactly on the North Pole but south of it so the crew was experimenting with a new design of the gyro-compass. As they inched farther north, the gyro-compass was much more reliable than the magnetic which pointed in nearly the opposite direction.
Autonetics was a division of North American Aviation that produced various avionics but is best known for their inertial navigation systems used in submarines and intercontinental ballistic missiles. Its 188-acre facility in Anaheim, California, with 36,000 employees, was the city’s largest employer. Through a series of mergers, Autonetics is now part of Boeing.
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com
