Answer: Jacques Cousteau (from June 11, 1910 to June 25, 1997)
Jacques Cousteau, a French navy explorer (undersea), research conductor and a photographer, filmmaker, author, who studied the undersea and all kind of life in water. Also was a pioneer of inventing a diving device i.e. scuba gear. He also made films and TV series namely Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau.
Importance to the Science of Oceanography:
Oceanography: is the study of all aspects regarding ocean. Oceanography covers all range of topics, from undersea life and ecosystems to waves & currents and geology of seafloor. Typically, oceanography four separate but related branches: physical oceanography, chemical oceanography, marine geology, and marine ecology.
Jacques Cousteau the ocean explorer and his achievements regarding Oceanography:
- Jacques Cousteau pioneer of scuba gear. Cousteau was the pioneer of scuba gear. Later on co invented Aqua-Lung with engineer Emile Gagnan Which was consist of a twin hose underwater breathing device during World War II. Due to Aqua-Lung, Cousteau and his fellowmen were able to explore and capture parts of the ocean depths that had never been seen before.
- Cousteau's underwater documentaries brought a new version to his viewers about marine life. Jacques Cousteau's pioneer of underwater documentaries—Namely the Oscar-winning films a). The Silent World, b). The Golden Fish, and c). World Without Sun.
- Cousteau pioneer of underwater base camps. Jacques Cousteau and his staff created the first underwater habitat for humans i.e. Conshelf I, following Conshelf II and III . Also providing people that they could live and operate underwater for extended periods of time.
- Cousteau helped bound commercial whaling. In 1986, Jacques get involved with heads of states and helped get the numbers for the commission to pass moratorium, on commercial whaling. The moratorium is still in place today but many some countries still hunt whales in the name of research and scientific work.
- Cousteau helped cease underwater dumping of nuclear waste
. In 1960, Jacques conduct a popular campaign against a French-government plan to dump nuclear waste into the Mediterranean Sea—and took his fight straight to the president of the republic to oppose nuclear power and dumping its waste in underwater. He added that we're dealing with waste that we don't know how to handle, we should not produce it.
His legacy: Cousteau's legacy contains more than 120 TV documentaries, approximately 50 books, and an environmental protection foundation with 300,000 active members. Jacques liked himself to be called an "oceanographic technician." He was, in reality, a sober showman, teacher, and has a lover for nature. His work allows many people to explore the resources and study the life of the oceans.
If Cousteau is present today, he would surely and definitely be sad about the current situation of marine life that by how less has been worked upon pollution, over fishing and other threats to the world's oceans like plastic waste and vice versa.
