Summary

Exploration tells the intriguing story of the navigators who crossed oceans to chart the coastlines of distant continents, the adventurers who traversed deserts and polar wastes, and the traders who sought new markets and commodities in faraway lands. The secrets of the planet and its living inhabitants have been unraveled thanks to the efforts made by these navigators and adventurers.

This new, full-color book begins with a narration of the earliest seagoing ships and the vehicles that transported diplomats, warriors, and merchants around the Mediterranean region and later around the world. It explores the Vikings who terrorized Western Europe and colonized Greenland as well as the swift outrigger vessels that sailed from Asia to the islands of the Pacific. This accessible resource describes the development of navigational instruments to help on long journeys out of sight of land—including the sextant and compass—and explains how to calculate latitude and longitude.

Chapters include:

• Down to the Sea in Ships
• Crossing the World
• Trading by Desert and by Sea
• The Art of Navigation
• The Wanderers
• The Arctic
• The Southern Land
• The Deserted Places
• Other Worlds
• Why We Explore.

Specifications

Full-color photographs and line illustrations. Index. Glossary. Web sources. Sidebars. Further resources. Tables and charts.

About the Author(s)

Michael Allaby is the author, coauthor, or editor of nearly 100 books, mainly on science, natural history, and environmental topics. Among other professional affiliations, he is a member of the New York Academy of Sciences and the Association of British Science Writers. He is the author of several volumes in the Ecosystem set and Encyclopedia of Weather and Climate, Revised Edition, all for Facts On File.