U.S. Naval Undersea Museum

06/18/2026

USS Florida (SSGN 728) turns 43 today! The long-serving sub was commissioned in 1983 as an Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine. Florida made strategic deterrent patrols for 20 years before undergoing conversion to a guided missile sub at Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY).

Since rejoining the fleet in 2006, Florida carries out her new SSGN missions: providing large-scale Tomahawk strike capability and launching/recovering special operations forces from her dry deck shelters.

06/15/2026

The livestream for World of Warships' Longest Night of Museums 2026 begins today! We're honored to participate as the U.S. Navy's national museum for torpedo history and technology.

WoWS and Naval Museum Atlas will explore the evolution of torpedoes throughout the day, connecting viewers to naval museums throughout the world. The livestream begins at 9 AM PDT and we're up first at 9:15 AM!

Watch here: https://wo.ws/3RZxdiK

06/14/2026

Today we remember the courage and ultimate sacrifice of Navy Seabee diver Robert Stethem. On this day in 1985, Hezbollah terrorists hijacked TWA Flight 847 and singled out 23-year-old Stethem for being a U.S. Navy Sailor. Stethem was beaten and tortured for 24 hours after he refused to denounce the United States. The terrorists then shot him and pushed his body onto the tarmac.

Five other Seabee divers on the flight — Stuart Dahl, Tony Watson, Jeffrey Ingalls, Kenneth Bowen, and Clinton Lee Suggs — endured brutal treatment by the terrorists for 17 days.

Stethem was posthumously promoted to Master Chief Constructionman, awarded a Purple Heart and Bronze Star, and was the namesake for an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer (USS Stethem DDG 63) commissioned in 1995. In 2015, then-Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus also presented POW Medals to Stethem's family and the five other Seabee divers held captive.

06/12/2026

USS Michigan (SSGN 727) rejoined the fleet in 2007, in a ceremony that brought her "to life" as a guided missile submarine. For 21 years, Michigan made strategic deterrent patrols as a ballistic missile submarine, until U.S. Navy requirements and nuclear treaty terms reduced the need for 18 Ohio-class submarines.

Four ballistic missile subs — Ohio, Michigan, Florida, and Georgia — were chosen for conversion to a guided missile platform. Michigan's conversion was carried out by PSNS & IMF on the Waterfront between February 2004 and November 2006.

06/11/2026

We're excited to participate in the Longest Night of Museums 2026 with World of Warships and Naval Museum Atlas!

This year's event explores the evolution of torpedoes, one of our specialties! We're thrilled to see this spotlight on the technology, stories, and artifacts behind one of naval history's most consequential weapons.

Watch the official trailer below and stay tuned for details on the Longest Night of Museums livestream on June 15!

Get free content offered by World of Warships here: https://wo.ws/3RZxdiK

06/10/2026

Master Chief Carl Brashear, whose story of perseverance reached millions in the movie “Men of Honor,” qualified as a Master Diver 56 years ago today. Brashear had resolved to become a Navy diver in the early 1950s after witnessing a diving operation, a goal he achieved in 1954 when he graduated as a Salvage Diver.

In 1966, a grave leg injury almost ended Brashear’s Navy career, but he chose to amputate his lower leg to resume diving. After strenuous rehabilitation and a year-long evaluation, Brashear was returned to full duty in 1968. He earned his Master Diver qualification two years later, on June 10, 1970, passing the difficult evaluation without making a single error.

06/09/2026

The U.S. Navy launched its first ballistic missile submarine, USS George Washington (SSBN 598), in 1959!

Commissioned six months later, George Washington ushered in a new mission for the U.S. Submarine Force: strategic deterrence. Ballistic missile submarines are the most undetectable third of America’s strategic triad, patrolling the world’s oceans to deter nuclear attacks.

As the first ballistic missile submarine, USS George Washington achieved other key firsts: the first submarine to fire missiles while submerged (July 1960), and the first SSBN to make a strategic deterrent patrol (November 1960–January 1961).

06/04/2026

On this day in 1944, a U.S. Navy hunter-killer task group captured the German submarine U-505 at sea.

Led by USS Guadalcanal (CVE 60), the task group detected and depth charged U-505, jamming the submarine's rudder and flooding its aft compartments. U-505's commanding officer ordered his crew to abandon ship and initiated scuttling procedures.

As the task group picked up the crew, Sailors from USS Pillsbury (DE 133) boarded U-505 and secured valuable intelligence material, including publications, codebooks, an Enigma cipher machine, and communication equipment. The boarding party saved U-505 from sinking by closing scuttling valves, disarming scuttling charges, and containing the flooding. Lt. j.g. Albert David, who headed the boarding party, was later awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions.

Following significant damage control efforts by U.S. Navy Sailors, U-505 was successfully towed to Bermuda. The German submarine found a permanent home in 1954 at the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, where it was painstakingly restored. U-505 was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1989 and is one of only two German Type IXC U-boats still in existence today.

06/04/2026

Today we remember a hero killed in action at the Battle of Midway 84 years ago: Lt. Cmdr. John Waldron, commanding officer of Torpedo Squadron 8 (VT-8).

After graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1924, Waldron underwent Navy flight training and became a naval aviator in 1927. For the next decade, he gained command and flight experience, subsequently taking command of VT-8 shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

At the Battle of Midway on June 4, 1942, Waldron led a group of TBD Devastator torpedo bombers into an attack on the Japanese carrier group. Instructed to fly west despite a report placing the Japanese southwest, Waldron disobeyed orders and led his squadron directly to the enemy carriers. There he and his pilots made repeated attacks with MK 13 torpedoes, but badly outnumbered, the Devastators were shot down one by one. Waldron was last seen standing with one leg on his wing root and one in his flaming cockpit.

In June 1944, almost two years to the day after Waldron was killed, the Navy commissioned the destroyer USS Waldron (DD 699) in his honor.

06/01/2026

Learn about our upcoming summer programs, who we are featuring in our "Faces of the Deep" exhibit, what happened this month in naval undersea history, and more in our June newsletter!
https://conta.cc/4o0zw0Z

Email from U.S. Naval Undersea Museum Mark your calendars for summer programming! UPCOMING SUMMER PROGRAMS     Mark your calendars! Our Wednesday Summer STEAM program begins July 8! During each event,