Magellan Discovers the Strait: Pacific Passage Found
Ferdinand Magellan entered the strait that bears his name on November 1, 1520, after fourteen months of sailing south along the coast of South America looking for a passage to the Pacific. He had already survived a mutiny in which he executed two captains and marooned a third. The strait was 350 miles long, tortuous, and flanked by glaciers and mountains. Fires burning on the southern shore, lit by indigenous inhabitants, gave Tierra del Fuego (Land of Fire) its name. One of his five ships deserted during the passage and sailed back to Spain. It took 38 days to navigate through. When Magellan emerged into the open Pacific, he reportedly wept. He named it the Pacific for its apparent calmness. He was killed in the Philippines five months later and never completed the circumnavigation he began.
November 1, 1520
506 years ago
Key Figures & Places
Pacific Ocean
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Atlantic Ocean
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Ferdinand Magellan
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circumnavigation
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South America
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Strait of Magellan
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Strait of Magellan
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Ferdinand Magellan
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Circumnavigation
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Región de Magallanes y de la Antártica Chilena
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Liste von Weltumrundungen
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South America
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Pacific Ocean
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Atlantic Ocean
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Magellan expedition
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