“My life has been defined by a quest to learn about the past
and to share what I have learned with others.”
JAMES DELGADO
Latest News
James Delgado and Michel L’Hour: underwater cultural heritage needs more protection
James Delgado and Michel L’Hour James Delgado and Michel L’Hour: underwater cultural heritage needs more protection From the UNESCO website: https://en.unesco.org The two renowned archaeologists will speak at the UNESCO conference in Paris, Sept. [...]
Missing German U-boat found
After a 7-year search, a missing German U-boat is lost no longer From the website of The Washington Post by Michael E. Ruane August 31, 2016 The sonar “target” first appears as a green and yellow [...]
USS Independence Survey
Here, the bow of the USS Independence seen during the robot sub survey in August 2016. Credit: OET/Nautilus Live From the website of LiveScience by Charles Q. Choi August 23, 2016 1st Look at [...]
(Videos) Adventures of a Maritime Archaeologist
Video: Adventures of a Maritime Archaeologist, Courtesy Ocean Today - NOAA Jim gives a quick overview of maritime archaeology, the connection we have with ships and the sea, and the importance of preserving [...]
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About James Delgado
Underwater Explorer
As an archaeologist, Jim has worked on both land and sea, on sites thousands of years old and sites as recent as the beginning stages of the Cold War.
James (Jim) Delgado brings four decades of scientific expertise in marine archaeology and deep-sea exploration, and a solid background in history, museums, and outreach through media, film, and publications. He is a scholar and a world-recognized interpreter whose work has reached hundreds of millions of viewers around the world, especially through his six seasons of work as host of a National Geographic International Television series. Jim’s work enhances the work of NOAA’s Sanctuaries through public appreciation of special ocean places while also working to better understand and protect the resources found in each sanctuary and in the nation’s waters.
Jim has extensive experience implementing projects around the world, often through public/private
partnerships. He served as the founding director of the National Park Service’s maritime preservation program during a 13-year career with the NPS. Many of the U.S. Government’s standards for maritime resources were developed by him or under his direction during those years. He left the government to serve, for 15 years, as the Executive Director of the Vancouver (Canada) Maritime Museum, and concurrently as a TV host for Discovery, the History Channel, A&E and National Geographic. After leaving the museum, he became President and CEO of the non-profit Institute of Nautical Archaeology, the world’s leading institute for the excavation and study of some of the world’s most significant shipwrecks for nearly five years before joining NOAA as Director of Maritime Heritage in NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries.
Jim holds a Ph.D. in Archaeology from Simon Fraser University, has a M.A. in Maritime Studies from East Carolina University, and he earned his B.A. in History from San Francisco State University. He has published actively in leading archaeology and history journals and has written or edited more than 32 books on archaeology and history, most recently Misadventures of a Civil War Submarine: Iron, Guns, and Pearls, Silent Killers: Submarines and Underwater Warfare, Nuclear Dawn: The Atomic Bomb from the Manhattan Project to the Cold War (winner of the 2011 Choice Award, Khubilai Khan’s Lost Fleet: In Search a Legendary Armada (winner of the 2011 Deetz Award), and Gold Rush Port: The Maritime Archaeology of San Francisco’s Waterfront. Other books include Waterfront: An Illustrated Maritime Story
of Greater Vancouver, Adventures of a Sea Hunter: In Search of Famous Shipwrecks, the Encyclopedia of Underwater and Maritime Archaeology, Ghost Fleet: The Sunken Ships of Bikini Atoll, Pearl Harbor Recalled: New Images from the Day of Infamy, Great American Ships, To California by Sea: A Maritime History of the Gold Rush, and three books for children; Wrecks of American Warships, Native American Shipwrecks, and Shipwrecks of the Westward Movement.
Jim is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, the Canadian Geographical Society, and the Explorers’ Club, and most recently was made an Officer of the Order of Civil Merit by His Majesty King Juan Carlos of Spain.