Simone Melchior

Simone Melchior
Born(1919-01-19)19 January 1919
Died1 December 1990(1990-12-01) (aged 71)
Spouse
(m. 1937)
Children

Simone Cousteau (née Melchior; 19 January 1919 – 1 December 1990) was a French explorer. She was the first woman scuba diver and aquanaut, and wife and business partner of undersea explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau.[1]

Although never visible in the Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau series, Simone played a key role in the operation at sea. Acting as mother, healer, nurse and psychiatrist to the all-male crew for 40 years, her nickname was "La Bergère", the Shepherdess. She 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.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Lunn2021 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).