The Aréthuse class were the first French submarines to use a diesel-electric propulsion system and were powered by two 12-cylinder SEMT Pielstick diesel engines driving one shaft rated at 790 kilowatts (1,060 bhp) surfaced.

The generators were placed on spring suspensions and the motor was attached directly to the shaft creating a near-silent operational environment while submerged.

Argonaute operated exclusively in the Mediterranean Sea as a deterrent against threats to commercial shipping between France and its colonies in North Africa.

[5] In 1982, the Association of Friends of the Maritime Museum for the Atlantic (French: l'Association des amis du Musée de la mer pour l'Atlantique) selected Argonaute to save from scrapping.

Once at the quay on the Canal de l'Ourcq, Argonaute was lifted from the water by cranes and transported 400 metres (1,300 ft) by trailer to its current site.

Argonaute opened to the public in 1991, outside the Cité des sciences et de l'industrie, 30 Avenue Corentin Cariou, in the 19th arrondissement of Paris.