The Triton was a nuclear powered submarine, and it was powered by the ongoing process of nuclear fission, where an atoms nucleus is split to release immense amounts of energy. The Triton was the largest submarine at that point – its primary purpose was for its radar.
On this day April 25th, in 1960, the USS Triton completes the first submerged circumnavigation of the world. It had left on February 24th, and it took 60 days and 21 hours to complete the entire circumnavigation.
Meant to develop U.S. technology, this ended up becoming more of a public spectacle to demonstrate the prowess that America had. Remember, the U.S. was in the Cold War with the Soviet Union at this time, so obviously showing the USSR up was very important to politicians. The Triton was named after the Greek God, Triton. He is the messenger of the sea.