THE NAUTILUS - SUBMARINE FROM THE JULES VERNE NOVEL '20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA'

Nautilus is the fictional name of a submarine that appears in the pages of Jules Verne's novels, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Mysterious Island. It can be assumed that in a world masterfully created by this classic of science fiction, the Nautilus was launched around 1860. It was about 70-75 m long and 8 m wide. The underwater displacement, in turn, ranged from 1,500 to 2,000 tons. The ship was characterized by a double-hull structure, and special steel sheets were used for its construction. The hull was shaped like an elongated cigar, but lacked the typical kiosk. Interestingly, the Nautilus was powered by electricity obtained from sodium batteries. The vessel could reach a speed of over 20 knots under water, and its alleged maximum draft was to be over 10,000 meters! The commander of the unit was the famous Captain Nemo (Latin Nobody). Nautilus sank in 1868. It is almost certain that the name of the vessel was referred to when the USS Nautilus (SSN-571) was launched - the first ever nuclear-powered submarine.