Jacques-Yves Cousteau (1910-1997) was a French filmmaker, oceanographer, and conservationist best known for his documentary television series The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau. Before climbing aboard his ship Calypso and donning his famous red beanie for the TV cameras, Cousteau served 19 years in the French Navy and helped invent the Aqua-Lung, the world’s first scuba device. Cousteau was highly decorated through his life and was a member of the Académie française until his death in 1997.

“What is a scientist after all? It is a curious person looking through a keyhole, the keyhole of nature, trying to know what’s going on.” -Jacque Cousteau

Cousteau’s grandson, Fabien Cousteau, is also an ocean explorer, as well as a Big Think expert.