Asherah (submarine)
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 Asherah | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name | Asherah |
| Namesake | Asherah |
| Ordered | 1963 |
| Builder | General Dynamics, Groton, Connecticut |
| Launched | 1964 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Submersible |
| Test depth | 600 feet (180 m) |
| Crew | 2 |
Asherah was the first commercially built American research submersible, owned by the University of Pennsylvania and used by archaeologist George F. Bass to examine underwater sites.[1][2] She was named after Asherah, an ancient Semitic goddess known as "she who treads on the sea".[3]
The two-person submarine was commissioned in 1963, built by the Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics in Groton, Connecticut, and launched on May 28, 1964. Asherah was 16 feet long, weighed 4.5 tons, and could move at up to 4 knots, powered by rechargeable batteries. She could dive to a depth of 600 feet (180 m). [4]
