Washington — Late on Aug. 3, 1958, the USS Nautilus became the first vessel to cross the North Pole, an event that was celebrated Thursday night in Washington with presentations by members of the original crew and some of the officers who participated in later Arctic sub explorations.

The Nautilus, built and launched at Electric Boat in Groton, was the first submarine powered by nuclear energy and now remains a vital component of the Submarine Force Library & Museum in Groton.

The celebration, complete with a birthday cake, took place at the U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation's Heritage Center in Washington and was hosted by the Naval Historical Foundation, the Naval Submarine League and the Naval Historical Center.

U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, on April 2 introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives to honor the 50th anniversary of Nautilus' Arctic crossing. Courtney, who spoke at the event Thursday, said he expects the resolution to be approved soon.

“The resolution is an important action by our country to recognize this historic occasion,” said Courtney, while pointing out that he had an “ulterior motive” in the symbolic resolution.

“I'm trying to get the spotlight on the importance of addressing the shortfall” of funding for submarines, he said.

Courtney pointed to that resolution as a way of continuing the momentum started last year, when $588 million was secured for construction of two Virginia-class submarines per year starting in 2011 instead of 2012, which was the Navy's initial recommendation.

Last year Courtney traveled to the North Pole aboard the USS Alexandria, which was participating in Arctic exercises conducted by the U.S. and British navies.

Though the Nautilus' 1958 voyage — dubbed Operation Sunshine — paved the way for numerous Arctic voyages and represented a breakthrough in national security during the Cold War period, members of the Arctic crossing fleet did not originally see it as such a momentous trip.

Retired Vice Adm. Kenneth Carr, who was on the 1958 voyage, said, “When I look back on it, it looks a lot more important than it did at the time.”

Retired Navy Lt. Joe Degnan, another member of the North Pole voyage, said the significance of his assignment set in when the crew was celebrated with a ticker-tape parade in New York.

“At the time it was just another assignment,” Degnan said before the event.

Navy Capt. Robert Perry, who spent 90 days under the ice in 1998 and 1999 while commanding the USS Hawkbill, pointed to the voyages as important opportunities for understanding the geography and science of the North Pole.

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