 "Discoverer" served in the Coast and Geodetic Survey as a survey ship until the summer of 1941, primarily in the waters of the Territory of Alaska.With the expansion of the American Navy during this time between the outbreak of war in Europe and the entry of the United States in the conflict (1939 to 1941), that service cast about for auxiliary vessels to support the growing number of combatant ships.Executive Order of 19 June 1941 authorized the Navy to take USC&GS "Discoverer" over for service as a salvage ship.