Who first explored the Pacific Ocean?

Explorer Ferdinand Magellan
Explorer Ferdinand Magellan named the Pacific Ocean in the 16th Century.

Who was the first European to see the ocean?

Vasco Núñez de Balboa
Explorer and conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa became the first European to see the Pacific Ocean.

When did the first Europeans pass through the Pacific?

Vasco Núñez de Balboa was the first European to sight the Pacific, in 1513; seven years later Ferdinand Magellan rounded South America and sailed across the ocean, missing the main island groups but probably encountering Pukapuka Atoll, in the Tuamotu Archipelago, and Guam.

Which explorer explored Australia and South Pacific region?

TASMAN, ABEL Abel Janszoon Tasman (1603-1659?) was a Dutch explorer who was the first European to sail to Tasmania, New Zealand, Tonga, and the Fiji Islands. His first expedition (1642-1643) was to Australasia, the Indian Ocean, and the South Pacific. His second expedition (1644) was to Australia and the South Pacific.

Who was the first European to see the eastern shore of the Pacific Ocean?

Vasco Nunez de Balboa (Jerez de los Caballeros, 1475 – Acla, January 15, 1519) was an Advance, explorer, governor, and Spanish conqueror. He was the first European to see the Pacific Ocean from its eastern shore.

When was Pacific Ocean discovered?

On September 25, 1513, Vasco Núñez de Balboa sighted the Pacific Ocean, which he called Mar del Sur (South Sea). Idealized portrait of Vasco Núñez de Balboa.

Who were the great sailors and explorers of the South Pacific?

Exploration and discovery in the Pacific in the 18th century were undertaken most actively by the British and the French. Four Englishmen—John Byron, Samuel Wallis, Philip Carteret, and James Cook—and the Frenchman Louis-Antoine de Bougainville were preeminent.

How did explorers find islands?

There are other ways to detect when an island is close: The easiest and best-known is by watching for birds. Birds need to nest on solid ground, but they might range out far over the sea in search of fish to eat. So if from the deck of your ship you see a flock of birds in the air, you know there’s an island nearby.

Who were the first Australian explorers?

The first known landing in Australia by Europeans was in 1606 by Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon. Later that year, Spanish explorer Luís Vaz de Torres sailed through, and navigated, what is now called Torres Strait and associated islands.

Who were the first European explorers to discover Australia?

While Indigenous Australians have inhabited the continent for tens of thousands of years, and traded with nearby islanders, the first documented landing on Australia by a European was in 1606. The Dutch explorer Willem Janszoon landed on the western side of Cape York Peninsula and charted about 300 km of coastline.

Who was the first to reach the South Pole?

Roald Amundsen
One hundred years ago today the South Pole was reached by a party of Norwegian explorers under the command of Roald Amundsen.

Who was the first European to see the Pacific Ocean from its eastern shore?

Vasco Núñez de Balboa, (born 1475, Jerez de los Caballeros, or Badajoz, Extremadura province, Castile—died January 12, 1519, Acla, near Darién, Panama), Spanish conquistador and explorer, who was head of the first stable settlement on the South American continent (1511) and who was the first European to sight the …

Who was the first person to cross the Pacific Ocean?

In 1513, Spanish explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Panama and saw the Pacific Ocean, and called it South Sea. In 1521, a Spanish expedition led by the Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan was the first known crossing of the Pacific Ocean, who then named it the “peaceful sea”.

Who was the first Spanish explorer to explore the Pacific Ocean?

In 1513, six years before Magellan, Spanish explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Panama and saw the Pacific Ocean. In 1517-18 two ships were built on the Pacific coast. In 1522 Pascual de Andagoya sailed the coast as far as Ecuador. In 1532 Francisco Pizarro conquered Peru.

How did Magellan get to the Pacific Ocean?

After sailing through the dangerous straits below South America that now bear his name, Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan enters the Pacific Ocean with three ships, becoming the first European explorer to reach the Pacific from the Atlantic.

What did Europeans think about the Pacific Ocean when they discovered it?

The Pacific recognized: Europeans knew that there was a vast ocean to the west, and the Chinese knew that there was one to the east. Learned Europeans thought that the world was round and that the two oceans were one. In 1492 Columbus sailed west to what he thought was Asia.