List of circumnavigations
Encyclopedia
Complete global circumnavigations
- (in multiple stages) Ferdinand MagellanFerdinand MagellanFerdinand Magellan was a Portuguese explorer. He was born in Sabrosa, in northern Portugal, and served King Charles I of Spain in search of a westward route to the "Spice Islands" ....
, 1511–1521 (multiple voyages). In 1511 he visited the Moluccas (3°9′S 129°23′E). He returned to Portugal and set out in 1519 to circumnavigate the globe, while in the service of the Spanish crown. He discovered and sailed through the Strait of MagellanStrait of MagellanThe Strait of Magellan comprises a navigable sea route immediately south of mainland South America and north of Tierra del Fuego...
, and reached the PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
in 1521, where he was killed on CebuCebu IslandCebu is an island of the Philippines. It is the main island of Cebu Province at the center of the Visayan Islands, south of Manila.It lies to the east of Negros Island; to the east is Leyte and to the southeast is Bohol Island. It is flanked on both sides by the Cebu Strait and Tañon Strait...
(10°5′N 123°33′E). The expedition was completed by Spaniard Juan Sebastián ElcanoJuan Sebastián ElcanoJuan Sebastián Elcano was a Basque Spanish explorer who completed the first circumnavigation of the world. As Ferdinand Magellan's second in command, Elcano took over after Magellan's death in the Philippines.-Early life:Elcano was born to Domingo Sebastián Elcano I and Catalina del Puerto...
. Magellan himself did not personally complete a circumnavigation of the Earth in one voyage. He crossed all longitudes by visiting the Moluccas, and later reaching that longitude again and further west. - (in multiple stages) Enrique of Malacca, c.1511—1521, Magellan's interpreter. He was captured in SumatraSumatraSumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
as a child and taken to the Moluccas (3°9′S 129°23′E), where he was sold to Magellan in 1511; he accompanied Magellan on his circumnavigation and ended up on CebuCebu IslandCebu is an island of the Philippines. It is the main island of Cebu Province at the center of the Visayan Islands, south of Manila.It lies to the east of Negros Island; to the east is Leyte and to the southeast is Bohol Island. It is flanked on both sides by the Cebu Strait and Tañon Strait...
(10°5′N 123°33′E), in the PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. - (complete) The 18 survivors, led by Juan Sebastián ElcanoJuan Sebastián ElcanoJuan Sebastián Elcano was a Basque Spanish explorer who completed the first circumnavigation of the world. As Ferdinand Magellan's second in command, Elcano took over after Magellan's death in the Philippines.-Early life:Elcano was born to Domingo Sebastián Elcano I and Catalina del Puerto...
, of Ferdinand MagellanFerdinand MagellanFerdinand Magellan was a Portuguese explorer. He was born in Sabrosa, in northern Portugal, and served King Charles I of Spain in search of a westward route to the "Spice Islands" ....
's Spanish expedition (which began with 5 ships and 200 men), 1519–1522, in the VictoriaVictoria (ship)Victoria was a Spanish carrack and the first ship to successfully circumnavigate the world. The Victoria was part of a Spanish expedition commanded by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, and after his demise during the voyage, by Juan Sebastián Elcano...
. After Magellan died in the PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
in 27 April 1521, the circumnavigation was completed under the command of the Basque seafarer Juan Sebastián ElcanoJuan Sebastián ElcanoJuan Sebastián Elcano was a Basque Spanish explorer who completed the first circumnavigation of the world. As Ferdinand Magellan's second in command, Elcano took over after Magellan's death in the Philippines.-Early life:Elcano was born to Domingo Sebastián Elcano I and Catalina del Puerto...
who returned to SevilleSevilleSeville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, Spain on 8 September 1522 after a journey of 3 years and 1 month. They were the first to circumnavigate the globe in a single expedition. - (Urdaneta completed) The survivors of García Jofre de Loaysa's Spanish expedition, 1525–1536. None of Loaysa's seven ships completed the voyage, but Santa María de la Victoria reached the Moluccas before being wrecked in a Portuguese attack. Successive chiefs of expedition (Loaisa, Elcano, Salazar, Iñiguez) died including De la Torre who died while crossing the Pacific Ocean. Andrés Urdaneta and other fellow men survived reaching the Spice Islands. Eventually Urdaneta and a few of his men returned to Spain in 1528 aboard a Portuguese ship via Cape of Good HopeCape of Good HopeThe Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
, and completed the second world circumnavigation in history. - Francis DrakeFrancis DrakeSir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...
, 1577–1580, in Golden HindGolden HindThe Golden Hind was an English galleon best known for its circumnavigation of the globe between 1577 and 1580, captained by Sir Francis Drake...
. Discovered the Drake PassageDrake PassageThe Drake Passage or Mar de Hoces—Sea of Hoces—is the body of water between the southern tip of South America at Cape Horn, Chile and the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica...
but entered the Pacific via the Strait of MagellanStrait of MagellanThe Strait of Magellan comprises a navigable sea route immediately south of mainland South America and north of Tierra del Fuego...
. - Martín Ignacio de LoyolaMartín Ignacio de LoyolaMartín Ignacio Martínez de Mallea, known as Martín Ignacio de Loyola, was a Franciscan friar, best known for his two travels around the world in 1580-1584 and 1585-1589, being the first person to complete the world circumnavigation twice, and for his missionary effort in China.He was a grandnephew...
, 1580–1584 and 1585–1589. First person to circumnavigate the world twice, and first one doing so in each of both directions (westwards and eastwards). - Thomas CavendishThomas CavendishSir Thomas Cavendish was an English explorer and a privateer known as "The Navigator" because he was the first who deliberately tried to emulate Sir Francis Drake and raid the Spanish towns and ships in the Pacific and return by circumnavigating the globe...
, 1586–1588, in DesireDesire (ship)The Desire was the 120 ton flagship Thomas Cavendish built for his highly successful 1586-1588 circumnavigation of the globe. The Desire was only the third ship to circumnavigate the globe after the Victoria of Ferdinand Magellan and the Golden Hind of Francis Drake...
. - Francesco Carletti, Florentine merchant, in 1594–1602
- The survivors of the expeditions of Jacques MahuJacques MahuJacob Mahu was a Dutch Explorer and leader of an expedition of five ships to IndiaThe first expedition, which was organised by Pieter van der Hagen and Johan van der Veeken, consisted of a fleet of five ships and about 500 men.The ships with their initial captains were:* The Hoop, captained by...
and Olivier van NoortOlivier van NoortOlivier van Noort was the first Dutchman to circumnavigate the world.Olivier van Noort was born in 1558 in Utrecht. He left Rotterdam on 2 July 1598 with four ships and a plan to attack Spanish possessions in the Pacific and to trade with China and the Spice Islands...
, 1598–1601. Of Mahu's five and Van Noort's four ships only two returned. - Joris van SpilbergenJoris van SpilbergenJoris van Spilbergen was a Dutch naval officer of the 17th century.His first major expedition was in 1596, when he sailed to Africa....
, 1614–1617 - Willem SchoutenWillem SchoutenWillem Cornelisz Schouten was a Dutch navigator for the Dutch East India Company. He was the first to sail the Cape Horn route to the Pacific Ocean.- Biography :Willem Cornelisz Schouten was born in c...
and Jacob Le MaireJacob Le MaireJacob Le Maire was a Dutch mariner who circumnavigated the earth in 1615-16. The strait between Tierra del Fuego and Isla de los Estados was named the Le Maire Strait in his honor, though not without controversy...
, 1615–1617 in Eendraght. Discovered Cape HornCape HornCape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
; the first expedition to enter the Pacific via the Drake PassageDrake PassageThe Drake Passage or Mar de Hoces—Sea of Hoces—is the body of water between the southern tip of South America at Cape Horn, Chile and the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica...
. - Jacques l'HermiteJacques l'HermiteJacques l'Hermite , sometimes also known as Jacques le Clerq , was a Dutch merchant, explorer and admiral known for his journey around the globe with the Nassau Fleet and for his blockade and raid on Callao in 1624 during that same voyage in which he also died...
and John Hugo Schapenham, 1623–1626. - Pedro CuberoPedro CuberoPedro Cubero Sebastián was a Spanish priest, best known for his travel around the world from 1670 to 1679.Pedro Cubero was born in the village of El Frasno, near to Calatayud, in the Spanish region of Aragón...
, 1670–1679. First around the world including significant travel overland. - Giovanni Francesco Gemelli CareriGemelli CareriGiovanni Francesco Gemelli Careri was a seventeenth-century Italian adventurer and traveler. He was among the first Europeans to tour the world using public transportation; his travels, undertaken for pleasure rather than profit, may have inspired Around the World in Eighty Days. Some suspected...
, 1693–1698. The first tourist to circumnavigate the globe, paying his own way on multiple voyages, crossing Mexico on land. - William DampierWilliam DampierWilliam Dampier was an English buccaneer, sea captain, author and scientific observer...
(English) 1679–1691; 1703–1707; and 1708–1711. First person to circumnavigate the world three times. - William FunnellWilliam FunnellWilliam Ross Norman Funnell is a top-class showjumper.He has been in many Nations Cup teams, but has never ridden in the Olympics. In 2006 he won the Hickstead Derby for the first time since his first attempt at the age of 17, and won it again two years later in 2008. He also won the famous derby...
(English) 1703–1707. - Woodes RogersWoodes RogersWoodes Rogers was an English sea captain, privateer, and, later, the first Royal Governor of the Bahamas. He is known as the captain of the vessel that rescued the marooned Alexander Selkirk, whose plight is generally believed to have inspired Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe.Rogers came from an...
(English) 1708–1710 with the Duke and the Duchess. He rescued Alexander SelkirkAlexander SelkirkAlexander Selkirk was a Scottish sailor who spent four years as a castaway when he was marooned on an uninhabited island. It is probable that his travels provided the inspiration for Daniel Defoe's novel Robinson Crusoe....
on Juan Fernandez on 31 January 1709. Selkirk had been stranded there for four years. - George Anson, 1st Baron AnsonGeorge Anson, 1st Baron AnsonAdmiral of the Fleet George Anson, 1st Baron Anson PC, FRS, RN was a British admiral and a wealthy aristocrat, noted for his circumnavigation of the globe and his role overseeing the Royal Navy during the Seven Years' War...
, 1740–1744, in - John ByronJohn ByronVice Admiral The Hon. John Byron, RN was a Royal Navy officer. He was known as Foul-weather Jack because of his frequent bad luck with weather.-Early career:...
, 1764–1766, in . - Samuel WallisSamuel WallisSamuel Wallis was a Cornish navigator who circumnavigated the world.Wallis was born near Camelford, Cornwall. In 1766 he was given the command of HMS Dolphin to circumnavigate the world, accompanied by the Swallow under the command of Philip Carteret...
and Philip CarteretPhilip CarteretPhilip Carteret, Seigneur of Trinity was a British naval officer and explorer who participated in two of the Royal Navy's circumnavigation expeditions in 1764-66 and 1766-69.-Biography:...
, 1766–1768, in Dolphin and . Carteret had served on Byron's expedition. Dolphin was the first ship to survive two circumnavigations. - Louis de Bougainville, 1766–1769 On board was Jeanne BaréJeanne BaréJeanne Baret was a member of Louis Antoine de Bougainville's expedition on the ships La Boudeuse and Étoile in 1766–1769. Baret is recognized as the first woman to have completed a voyage of circumnavigation.Jeanne Baret joined the expedition disguised as a man, calling herself Jean Baret...
, disguised as a man, the first woman to circumnavigate the globe. - James CookJames CookCaptain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
, 1768–1771, in HMS EndeavourHM Bark EndeavourHMS Endeavour, also known as HM Bark Endeavour, was a British Royal Navy research vessel commanded by Lieutenant James Cook on his first voyage of discovery, to Australia and New Zealand from 1769 to 1771....
. The first circumnavigation to lose no personnel to scurvyScurvyScurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen in humans. The chemical name for vitamin C, ascorbic acid, is derived from the Latin name of scurvy, scorbutus, which also provides the adjective scorbutic...
. - Tobias FurneauxTobias FurneauxCaptain Tobias Furneaux was an English navigator and Royal Navy officer, who accompanied James Cook on his second voyage of exploration. He was the first man to circumnavigate the world in both directions....
, 1772–1774, in . The first circumnavigation from west to east. (Furneaux was a veteran of Byron's expedition so he was also the first person to circumnavigate in both directions.) - James CookJames CookCaptain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
, 1772–1775 in HMS ResolutionHMS Resolution (Cook)HMS Resolution was a sloop of the Royal Navy, and the ship in which Captain James Cook made his second and third voyages of exploration in the Pacific...
. - Alessandro MalaspinaAlessandro MalaspinaAlessandro Malaspina was an Italian nobleman who spent most of his life as a Spanish naval officer and explorer...
, 1776–1778. - George Dixon and Nathaniel Portlock, 1785–1788 in Queen Charlotte and King George respectively; early pioneers of the Maritime Fur TradeMaritime Fur TradeThe Maritime Fur Trade was a ship-based fur trade system that focused on acquiring furs of sea otters and other animals from the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast and natives of Alaska. The furs were mostly sold in China in exchange for tea, silks, porcelain, and other Chinese...
between the Pacific NorthwestPacific NorthwestThe Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
and China. - Robert Gray, 1787–1790, first American circumnavigation.
- Ignacio Maria de AlavaIgnacio Maria de Alava y Saenz de NavarreteIgnacio Maria de Alava y Saenz de Navarrete was a Spanish naval officer, present at the Battle of Trafalgar.-Naval career:Alava joined the Spanish navy in 1766. In his early years, he was involved in fighting the pirates of the North African coast...
, 1795–1803, in Montañés, flagship of a Spanish NavySpanish NavyThe Spanish Navy is the maritime branch of the Spanish Armed Forces, one of the oldest active naval forces in the world. The Armada is responsible for notable achievements in world history such as the discovery of Americas, the first world circumnavigation, and the discovery of a maritime path...
squadronSquadron (naval)A squadron, or naval squadron, is a unit of 3-4 major warships, transport ships, submarines, or sometimes small craft that may be part of a larger task force or a fleet...
. - Adam Johann von KrusensternAdam Johann von KrusensternAdam Johann Ritter von Krusenstern , was an admiral and explorer, who led the first Russian circumnavigation of the globe.- Life :...
and Yuri LisyanskyYuri LisyanskyYuri Fyodorovich Lisyansky was an officer in the Imperial Russian Navy and explorer of Ukrainian origin....
, 1803–1806, the first Russian circumnavigationFirst Russian circumnavigationThe first Russian circumnavigation of the Earth took place from August 1803 to August 1806. It was sponsored by Count Nikolay Rumyantsev and was headed by Adam Johann von Krusenstern.-Events:...
. - Faddey Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev, 1819–1821, the first circumnavigation mostly between 60° and 70° S, discovered Antarctica and the first islands south of the Antarctic CircleAntarctic CircleThe Antarctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs south of the Equator.-Description:...
- Robert FitzroyRobert FitzRoyVice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy RN achieved lasting fame as the captain of HMS Beagle during Charles Darwin's famous voyage, and as a pioneering meteorologist who made accurate weather forecasting a reality...
, 1831–1836, in HMS BeagleHMS BeagleHMS Beagle was a Cherokee-class 10-gun brig-sloop of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 11 May 1820 from the Woolwich Dockyard on the River Thames, at a cost of £7,803. In July of that year she took part in a fleet review celebrating the coronation of King George IV of the United Kingdom in which...
with Charles DarwinCharles DarwinCharles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...
. - The first Galathea expeditionGalathea ExpeditionThe Galathea expeditions comprise a series of three Danish ship-based scientific research expeditions in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, carried out with material assistance from the Royal Danish Navy and, with regard to the second and third expeditions, under the auspices of the Danish...
, 1845–1847, first Danish circumnavigation. - The circumnavigation of SMS NovaraSMS Novara (1850)SMS Novara was a sail frigate of the Austro-Hungarian Navy most noted for sailing the globe for the Novara Expedition of 1857–1859 and, later for carrying Archduke Maximilian and wife Carlota to Vera Cruz in May 1864 to become Emperor and Empress of Mexico.-Service :The SMS Novara was a frigate...
, 1857–1859, first Austrian circumnavigation. - The screw frigateScrew frigateSteam frigates and the smaller steam corvettes were steam-powered warships.The first vessel that can be considered a steam frigate was the Demologos which was launched in 1815 for the United States Navy....
Amazonas, 1856–1858, first PeruvianPeruPeru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
circumnavigation. - CSS ShenandoahCSS ShenandoahCSS Shenandoah, formerly Sea King, was an iron-framed, teak-planked, full rigged ship, with auxiliary steam power, captained by Commander James Waddell, Confederate States Navy, a North Carolinian with twenty years' service in the United States Navy.During 12½ months of 1864–1865 the ship...
1864-65 only ConfederateConfederate States of AmericaThe Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
ship to circumnavigate. Capt. James Waddell - Casto Méndez NúñezCasto Méndez NúñezCasto Secundino María Méndez Núñez , Spanish military naval officer. Born in Vigo . In 1866 during the Chincha Islands War between Spain, Peru and Chile, he was General Commander of the Spanish fleet in the Pacific...
, 1865–1868, aboard Numancia, first ironclad warshipIronclad warshipAn ironclad was a steam-propelled warship in the early part of the second half of the 19th century, protected by iron or steel armor plates. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or incendiary shells. The first ironclad battleship, La Gloire,...
circumnavigation; "Enloricata navis que primo terram circuivit". - Fernando VillaamilFernando VillaamilFernando Villaamil was a Spanish naval officer, remembered for his internationally recognized professionalism, for being the designer of the first destroyer warship in history and for his heroic death in the naval Battle of Santiago de Cuba of the Spanish-American war, being the highest ranking...
, 1892–1894, aboard Nautilus, first training ship circumnavigation. - Joshua SlocumJoshua SlocumJoshua Slocum was the first man to sail single-handedly around the world. He was a Canadian born, naturalised American seaman and adventurer, and a noted writer. In 1900 he told the story of this in Sailing Alone Around the World...
, 1895–1898, first single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
circumnavigation. - The Great White FleetGreat White FleetThe Great White Fleet was the popular nickname for the United States Navy battle fleet that completed a circumnavigation of the globe from 16 December 1907 to 22 February 1909 by order of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. It consisted of 16 battleships divided into two squadrons, along with...
, 1907–1909, first fleet to circumnavigate the world - Harry PidgeonHarry PidgeonHarry Clifford Pidgeon , was an American sailor, a noted photographer, and was the second person to sail single-handedly around the world , 23 years after Joshua Slocum. Pidgeon was the first person to do this via the Panama Canal, and the first person to solo circumnavigate the world twice...
, 1921–1925 1932–1937, second single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
circumnavigation, first person to circumnavigate solo twice. - Irving JohnsonIrving JohnsonIrving McClure Johnson was an American author, lecturer, adventurer, and sail training pioneer....
, 1934–1958, sail trainingSail trainingFrom its modern interpretations to its antecedents when maritime nations would send young naval officer candidates to sea , sail training provides an unconventional and effective way of building many useful skills on and off the water....
pioneer together with his wife Electa "Exy" Johnson, circumnavigated the world 7 times with amateur crews. - Vito DumasVito DumasVito Dumas was an Argentine single-handed sailor.In 1942, while the world was in the depths of World War II, he set out on a single-handed circumnavigation of the Southern Ocean. He left Buenos Aires in June, sailing Lehg II, a 31-foot ketch named for the initials of his mistress...
1942 single handed circumnavigation of the southern oceans, including the first single handed passage of all three great capes. - Operation SandblastOperation SandblastOperation Sandblast was the code name for the first submerged circumnavigation of the world executed by the U.S. Navy nuclear-powered radar picket submarine in 1960 while under the command of Captain Edward L. Beach, USN...
, , 1960 first underwaterTimeline of underwater technologyThis is a timeline of underwater technology.The entries marked ## are about decompression tables.-Pre-industrial:* Several centuries BC: This is a timeline of underwater technology.The entries marked ## are about decompression tables.-Pre-industrial:* Several centuries BC: This is a timeline of...
circumnavigation. - Operation Sea OrbitOperation Sea OrbitOperation Sea Orbit was the 1964 around-the-world cruise of the United States Navy's Task Force One, consisting of USS Enterprise , USS Long Beach , and USS Bainbridge . This all-nuclear-powered unit steamed 30,565 miles unrefuelled around the world for sixty-five days.The cruise began on July 31...
, 1964, first circumnavigation by an all-nuclear squadron: USS Enterprise (CVAN-65)USS Enterprise (CVN-65)USS Enterprise , formerly CVA-65, is the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and the eighth US naval vessel to bear the name. Like her predecessor of World War II fame, she is nicknamed the "Big E". At , she is the longest naval vessel in the world...
, USS Long Beach (CGN-9)USS Long Beach (CGN-9)USS Long Beach was a nuclear-powered guided missile cruiser in the United States Navy. She was the only ship of her class....
, and USS Bainbridge (DLGN-25). - Robin Lee GrahamRobin Lee GrahamRobin Lee Graham is an American sailor. He set out to sail around the world alone as a teenager in the summer of 1965. National Geographic Magazine carried the story, and he co-wrote a book, title Dove, detailing his journey....
, 1965-c. 1970, youngest at the time (at age 16-21) solo circumnavigation aboard 24' sailboat Dove. - Sir Francis ChichesterFrancis ChichesterSir Francis Charles Chichester KBE , aviator and sailor, was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for becoming the first person to sail single-handed around the world by the clipper route, and the fastest circumnavigator, in nine months and one day overall.-Early life:Chichester was born in Barnstaple,...
, 1966–1967, first single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
circumnavigation with just one port of callPort of Call-Synopsis:Berit, a young woman living in a working-class port town begins a relationship with Gösta, a sailor newly returned from overseas and intent upon staying on land...
. - Robin Knox-JohnstonRobin Knox-JohnstonSir William Robert Patrick "Robin" Knox-Johnston, CBE, RD and bar is an English sailor. He was the first man to perform a single-handed non-stop circumnavigation of the globe and was the second winner of the Jules Verne Trophy . For this he was awarded with Blake the ISAF Yachtsman of the Year award...
, 1968–1969, first single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
non-stop circumnavigation. - Chay BlythChay BlythSir Charles Blyth, CBE, BEM , known as Chay Blyth, is a Scottish yachtsman and rower. He was the first person to sail non-stop westwards around the world , on a 59-foot boat called British Steel.- Early life:...
, 1971, first westwards single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
non-stop circumnavigation. - Krystyna Chojnowska-LiskiewiczKrystyna Chojnowska-LiskiewiczKrystyna Chojnowska-Liskiewicz was the first woman to sail single-handed around the world, repeating the accomplishment of Joshua Slocum...
, 1976–1978, first woman to perform a single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
circumnavigation. - Naomi JamesNaomi JamesDame Naomi Christine James DBE, was the first woman to sail single-handed around the world via Cape Horn...
, 1977–1978, first woman to perform a single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
circumnavigation via Cape Horn. - Mark Schrader, completed two solo circumnavigations. In 1982–1983 became the first American to complete a solo circumnavigation via the 5 Great CapesGreat capesIn sailing, the great capes are the three major capes of the Southern Ocean — the Cape of Good Hope , Cape Leeuwin, and Cape Horn. South East Cape of Tasmania and South West Cape at the southern tip of Stewart Island/Rakiura are also sometimes included as major landmarks of a circumnavigation...
. - Marvin CreamerMarvin CreamerMarvin Creamer is a former college professor and amateur American sailor noted for having sailed around the globe without the aid of navigational instruments...
(USA), 21 December 1982 – 17 May 1984, only known person to circumnavigate the globe by boat with no nautical aids, not even a compass or watch http://www.globestar.org/. - Curtis and Lettie Ciszek Sept.1982 -June 1987, Seattle to Seattle, S/V Rough & Ready 42' ketch Daughter Eulalie was 3-months old when starting voyage and 4.5 when completed may be youngest ever circumnavigator. Daughter Shelly born on board along the way. Hilo, HI 1st redundant port.
- David Scott CowperDavid Scott CowperDavid Scott Cowper is a British yachtsman, and was the first man to sail solo round the world in both directions and was also the first to successfully sail around the world via the Northwest Passage single-handed.-Biography:...
, 1985, first single-handed circumnavigation by motor boat. - Teddy SeymourTeddy SeymourTeddy Seymour is the first black man to sail around the world solo.On June 19, 1987, Teddy Seymour became officially designated the first black man to sail around the world when he completed his solo sailing circumnavigation in Frederiksted, St...
, 1987, the first African-American to complete solo single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
circumnavigation, aboard sailboat Love Song. - Tania AebiTania AebiTania Aebi is an American sailor. She completed a solo circumnavigation of the globe in a 26 foot sailboat between the ages of 18 and 21, thus making her the first American woman and the youngest person to sail around the world...
, 1985–1987, American woman who completed a solo circumnavigation by the age of 20, one 80 nautical miles (148.2 km) stretch with crew disqualified her from an official record. - Kay CotteeKay CotteeKay Cottee, AO was the first female sailor to perform a single-handed, non-stop circumnavigation of the world. She performed this feat in 1988 in her yacht Blackmore's First Lady, taking 189 days.-Early life:...
, 1988, first woman to perform a solo non-stop circumnavigation. - David Scott CowperDavid Scott CowperDavid Scott Cowper is a British yachtsman, and was the first man to sail solo round the world in both directions and was also the first to successfully sail around the world via the Northwest Passage single-handed.-Biography:...
, 1990, first single-handed circumnavigation via the North West Passage. - David DicksDavid DicksDavid Dicks OAM CitWA, is an Australian sailor. He became the youngest person to sail non-stop and solo around the world. In February 1996, at the age of 17, he set out from Fremantle, Western Australia in his family's 10m S&S 34 sloop named 'Seaflight'...
, 1996, youngest recognized assisted circumnavigation, completed aged 18 years 41 days. - Henk de VeldeHenk de VeldeHenk de Velde is a Dutch seafarer. He is especially known for his long solo-voyages around the world....
, 1997, sailed a catamaran eastbound around the world in 119 days, non-stop. He is still the only person in the world to perform this feat single-handed with a catamaran, except for Ellen MacArthurEllen MacArthurDame Ellen Patricia MacArthur, DBE is an English sailor, up until 2009, from Whatstandwell near Matlock in Derbyshire, now based in West Cowes, on the Isle of Wight. She is best known as a solo long-distance yachtswoman. On 7 February 2005 she broke the world record for the fastest solo...
and more. - Jesse MartinJesse MartinJesse Martin is an Australian sailor who in 1999 became the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe solo, non-stop, and unassisted, taking the record from David Dicks, who was 24 days younger when he completed his circumnavigation, but had obtained assistance. Martin's journey in the S&S 34...
, 1999, youngest recognized unassisted circumnavigation, completed aged 18 years 66 days. - Mike GoldingMike GoldingMike Golding is an English yachtsman. He is one of the few yachtsmen to have raced round the world non stop in both directions...
, 2001, First person to non-stop circumnavigate in both east and west directions. 1993 World record for westabout circumnavigation 161 days, Group 4. 2001 Vendee Globe Race 7th position. - Charl DeVilliers, 2004, First deaf person to perform a solo circumnavigation.
- Bruno PeyronBruno PeyronBruno Tristan Peyron is a French yachtsman who, along with his crew on the catamaran Orange II, broke the outright round-the-world sailing record in March 2005. He was the first winner of the Jules Verne Trophy in 1994, for completing a round-the-world trip in under 80 days...
and crew, 2005, set current windpowered circumnavigation record, 50 days, 16 hours, 20 minutes, aboard maxi catamaran Orange IIOrange IIOrange II is a large catamaran designed for ocean racing, a "maxicat". The boat is 36.80 m long and has a 45 m mast. It is one of the fastest ocean-going sailing vessels in the world...
. - Ellen MacArthurEllen MacArthurDame Ellen Patricia MacArthur, DBE is an English sailor, up until 2009, from Whatstandwell near Matlock in Derbyshire, now based in West Cowes, on the Isle of Wight. She is best known as a solo long-distance yachtswoman. On 7 February 2005 she broke the world record for the fastest solo...
, 2005, then the fastest singlehanded circumnavigation (71 days), still (2010) she is the fastest woman. In 2001 she also circumnavigated singlehandedly as the then fastest woman. - Donna Lange, 2005–2007, East about via the southern ocean with three stops.
- Dee CaffariDee CaffariDenise "Dee" Caffari MBE is a British sailor, and in 2006 became the first woman to sail single-handedly and non-stop around the world "the wrong way"; westward against the prevailing winds and currents...
, 2006, first woman to perform a solo westabout non-stop circumnavigation, in 178 days. - Fernando Garcia-DuBose 2006-2008, Circumnavigation North Atlantic Route.
- Natasza Caban, 2007–2009, Polish woman, born 1977, East to West, Hawaii to Hawaii through the Panama Canal, boat "Tanasza"
- Zac SunderlandZac SunderlandZachary Tristan "Zac" Sunderland is an American sailor who was the first person under the age of 18 to sail solo around the world. Sunderland completed his trip after 13 months and 2 days at sea on July 16, 2009 at age 17...
, 2008–2009, youngest person (aged 16–17 years) to perform a circumnavigation through Panama Canal (with stops) at the time he completed his voyage. Six weeks later Michael PerhamMichael PerhamMichael Perham is a young adventurer from Potters Bar who, at the age of 17 years and 164 days, became the youngest person to sail around the world solo in the 50 ft racing yacht totallymoney.com, completing his journey on 27 August 2009...
(who is 3 1/2 months his junior) claimed the distinction. - Michael PerhamMichael PerhamMichael Perham is a young adventurer from Potters Bar who, at the age of 17 years and 164 days, became the youngest person to sail around the world solo in the 50 ft racing yacht totallymoney.com, completing his journey on 27 August 2009...
, 2009, youngest person (aged 16–17 years) to perform a circumnavigation through Panama Canal (he made stops) - Jessica WatsonJessica WatsonJessica Watson is an Australian sailor. She resides in Buderim, Queensland. In May 2010, she unofficially became the youngest person to sail non-stop and unassisted around the world, although her route did not meet World Sailing Speed Record Council criteria for circumnavigation of the...
, 2010, youngest person (aged 16) to perform a solo circumnavigation (she made no stops). - Reid StoweReid StoweWilliam Reid Stowe is an American artist and mariner. Stowe grew up around sailboats on the East Coast, sailing on the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans in his late teens and early 20's. By age 26, he had built two of his own sailboats with the help of his family and friends...
, 2010, eastbound circumnavigation, non-stop, for 1152 days: longest time spent at sea without resupply or touching land. - Jeanne Socrates, 2011, oldest woman (aged 68) to perform eastbound singlehanded circumnavigation (with stops) via Cape Horn.
Significant nonglobal maritime circumnavigations
- PhoeniciaPhoeniciaPhoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
n expedition sent by PharaohPharaohPharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...
Necho IINecho IINecho II was a king of the Twenty-sixth dynasty of Egypt .Necho II is most likely the pharaoh mentioned in several books of the Bible . The Book of Kings states that Necho met King Josiah of the Kingdom of Judah at Megiddo and killed him...
, c. 600 BC, possibly circumnavigating Africa. - Roman Governor Gnaeus Julius AgricolaGnaeus Julius AgricolaGnaeus Julius Agricola was a Roman general responsible for much of the Roman conquest of Britain. His biography, the De vita et moribus Iulii Agricolae, was the first published work of his son-in-law, the historian Tacitus, and is the source for most of what is known about him.Born to a noted...
, c. 80, first circumnavigation of BritainBritish IslesThe British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
. - Jacques CartierJacques CartierJacques Cartier was a French explorer of Breton origin who claimed what is now Canada for France. He was the first European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, which he named "The Country of Canadas", after the Iroquois names for the two big...
, 1534–1535, first circumnavigation of Newfoundland. - García de Nodal, 1619, first circumnavigation of Tierra del FuegoTierra del FuegoTierra del Fuego is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of a main island Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego divided between Chile and Argentina with an area of , and a group of smaller islands including Cape...
. - James CookJames CookCaptain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
, 1769–1770, first circumnavigation of New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. - Matthew FlindersMatthew FlindersCaptain Matthew Flinders RN was one of the most successful navigators and cartographers of his age. In a career that spanned just over twenty years, he sailed with Captain William Bligh, circumnavigated Australia and encouraged the use of that name for the continent, which had previously been...
, 1801–1803, first circumnavigation of AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. - Adolf Erik NordenskiöldAdolf Erik NordenskiöldFreiherr Nils Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld , also known as A. E. Nordenskioeld was a Finnish baron, geologist, mineralogist and arctic explorer of Finnish-Swedish origin. He was a member of the prominent Finland-Swedish Nordenskiöld family of scientists...
, 1878–1879, first circumnavigation of EurasiaEurasiaEurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...
, via the Northeast Passage and the Suez CanalSuez CanalThe Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
. - RCMP St Roch — first vessel to circumnavigate North America. 1940-1942, Vancouver to Halifax, Nova ScotiaNova ScotiaNova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, via the Northwest PassageNorthwest PassageThe Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
. 1950, Halifax to Vancouver, via the Panama CanalPanama CanalThe Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
., 1954, first vessel to circumnavigate North America in a single voyage, via the Panama CanalPanama CanalThe Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
. - USS BelmontUSS Belmont (AGTR-4)USS Belmont was a Belmont-class technical research ship acquired by the U.S. Navy for the task of conducting research in the reception of electromagnetic propagations.- Belmonts civilian life :...
, 1967, circumnavigated South America via the Panama CanalPanama CanalThe Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
. - CCGS HudsonCCGS HudsonThe CCGS Hudson is an offshore oceanographic and hydrographic survey vessel operated by the Canadian Coast Guard.The Hudson is Canada's oldest operational ocean research vessel...
, 1970, first circumnavigation of NorthNorth AmericaNorth America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and South America. - Miles ClarkMiles Clark (sailor)Miles Clark was an Irish sailor and writer. He was the son of Wallace Clark and the godson of Miles Smeeton, themselves both distinguished yachtsmen and authors...
circumnavigate EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in 1992, going from White SeaWhite SeaThe White Sea is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is surrounded by Karelia to the west, the Kola Peninsula to the north, and the Kanin Peninsula to the northeast. The whole of the White Sea is under Russian sovereignty and considered to be part of...
to Black SeaBlack SeaThe Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
through several RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n waterways. - Phoenicia, a replica of the PhoeniciaPhoeniciaPhoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
n ships, remade the possible circumnavigation of Africa, but completed the modern trip by going from SyriaSyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
to the Red SeaRed SeaThe Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
via the Suez CanalSuez CanalThe Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
. - In 2011, Peter Schmidt Mikkelsen and John Murray plan to circumnavigate the ArcticArcticThe Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
, which is possible after many passages that were covered with ice melted.
Fastest nautical circumnavigations of the globe
- Bruno PeyronBruno PeyronBruno Tristan Peyron is a French yachtsman who, along with his crew on the catamaran Orange II, broke the outright round-the-world sailing record in March 2005. He was the first winner of the Jules Verne Trophy in 1994, for completing a round-the-world trip in under 80 days...
(French), January–March 2005, fastest circumnavigation 50 days 16 hours 20 minutes 4 seconds. - Jean Luc Van Den HeedeJean Luc Van Den HeedeJean Luc Van Den Heede is a French sailor. He is best known for his achievements in single-handed sailing and set the current world-record for the westabout circumnavigation .He started sailing at the age of 17...
(French), 2004, fastest westward single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
circumnavigation, 122 days 14 hours 3 minutes 49 seconds. - Adrienne CahalanAdrienne CahalanAdrienne Cahalan was the only woman competing in the 2005-2006 Volvo Ocean Race . She was a qualified lawyer and had a master’s degree in Applied Meteorology....
(Australian), February–March 2004, fastest woman to complete a circumnavigation (crew of "Cheyenne") 58 days 9 hours 32 minutes 45 seconds - Francis JoyonFrancis JoyonFrancis Joyon is a professional sail boat racer and yachtsman, and currently holds the record for the fastest single-handed sailing circumnavigation....
(French), Nov 2007–Jan 2008, fastest single-handedSingle-handed sailingThe sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
57 days, 13 hours, 34 minutes, 6 seconds. - Jon SandersJon SandersJon Sanders is an Australian yachtsman.- Early years :He grew up in Perth and in his teens and twenties, worked with shearing teams for 17 years. Initially he was a wool classer/shearing contractor, shearing team overseer and later owner of his own shearing team...
holds the world record for completing a single-handed triple circumnavigation. - The , at 148,528 gross tons, became the world's largest passenger ship to circumnavigate the globe during her 2007 world cruise.
Aircraft
- United States Army Air ServiceUnited States Army Air ServiceThe Air Service, United States Army was a forerunner of the United States Air Force during and after World War I. It was established as an independent but temporary wartime branch of the War Department by two executive orders of President Woodrow Wilson: on May 24, 1918, replacing the Aviation...
, 1924, first aerial circumnavigationFirst aerial circumnavigationThe first aerial circumnavigation of the world was conducted in 1924 by a team of aviators of the United States Army Air Service, the precursor of the United States Air Force...
, 175 days, covering 44360 kilometres (27,564.1 mi). - Baron F. M. Koenig Warthausen, starting in September 1928 circumnavigated the globe solo over the next two years.
- LZ-127 Graf ZeppelinLZ 127 Graf ZeppelinLZ 127 Graf Zeppelin was a German built and operated passenger-carrying hydrogen-filled rigid airship which operated commercially from 1928 to 1937. It was named after the German pioneer of airships, Ferdinand von Zeppelin, who was a Graf or Count in the German nobility. During its operating life,...
, 1929, piloted by Hugo EckenerHugo EckenerDr. Hugo Eckener was the manager of the Luftschiffbau Zeppelin during the inter-war years, and was commander of the famous Graf Zeppelin for most of its record-setting flights, including the first airship flight around the world, making him the most successful airship commander in history...
set a record for the fastest aerial circumnavigation, 21 days, which was also the first circumnavigation in an airship. - On 1 July 1931, pilot Wiley PostWiley PostWiley Hardeman Post was a famed American aviator, the first pilot to fly solo around the world. Also known for his work in high altitude flying, Post helped develop one of the first pressure suits. His Lockheed Vega aircraft, the Winnie Mae, was on display at the National Air and Space Museum's...
and navigator Harold GattyHarold GattyHarold Charles Gatty was an Australian navigator, inventor, and aviation pioneer...
completed their circumnavigation of the world in a Lockheed VegaLockheed Vega|-See also:-References:NotesCitationsBibliography* Allen, Richard Sanders. Revolution in the Sky: Those Fabulous Lockheeds, The Pilots Who Flew Them. Brattleboro, Vermont: The Stephen Greene Press, 1964....
aeroplane, Winnie Mae, in 8 days, 15 hours and 51 minutes; the record for fastest circumnavigation was once again held by an aeroplane. - In 1932 Wolfgang von Gronau flew around the World with a twin engine Dornier seaplaneDornier Do JThe Dornier Do J Wal was a twin-engine German flying boat of the 1920s designed by Dornier Flugzeugwerke. The Do J was designated the Do 16 by the Reich Air Ministry under its aircraft designation system of 1933....
, Gronland-Wal D-2053, in nearly four months, making 44 stops en route. He was accompanied by co-pilot Gerth von Roth, mechanic Franzl Hack, and radio operator Frtiz Albrecht. - In 1933 Wiley PostWiley PostWiley Hardeman Post was a famed American aviator, the first pilot to fly solo around the world. Also known for his work in high altitude flying, Post helped develop one of the first pressure suits. His Lockheed Vega aircraft, the Winnie Mae, was on display at the National Air and Space Museum's...
repeated his circumnavigation by aeroplane, but this time solo, using an autopilotAutopilotAn autopilot is a mechanical, electrical, or hydraulic system used to guide a vehicle without assistance from a human being. An autopilot can refer specifically to aircraft, self-steering gear for boats, or auto guidance of space craft and missiles...
and radio direction finder. He made the first solo aerial circumnavigation in a time one day faster than his previous record: 7 days, 19 hours, 49 minutes, in which he covered 25110 kilometres (15,602.7 mi). - In 1949 the United States Air ForceUnited States Air ForceThe United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
B-50 SuperfortressB-50 SuperfortressThe Boeing B-50 Superfortress strategic bomber was a post-World War II revision of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, fitted with more powerful Pratt & Whitney R-4360 radial engines, stronger structure, a taller fin, and other improvements. It was the last piston-engined bomber designed by Boeing for...
Lucky Lady II made the first non-stop aerial circumnavigation in 94 hours and 1 minute. Four in-air refuelings were required for the flight, which covered 37743 kilometres (23,452.5 mi). - Geraldine Mock, 1964, first woman to complete a solo aerial circumnavigation.
- Don TaylorDonald Taylor (aviator)Donald P. Taylor is an American aviator, notable for being in the late summer and early fall of 1976 the first person in history to successfully fly a homebuilt aircraft around the world...
, 1976, first general aviationGeneral aviationGeneral aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
circumnavigation by homebuilt aircraftHomebuilt aircraftAlso known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, homebuilt aircraft are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch," from plans, or from assembly kits.-Overview:...
. - Dick RutanDick RutanRichard Glenn "Dick" Rutan is an aviator who piloted the Voyager aircraft around the world non-stop with co-pilot Jeana Yeager...
and Jeana YeagerJeana YeagerJeana Yeager is an aviator. She is most famous for co-piloting a non-stop, non-refueled flight around the world in the Rutan Voyager aircraft from 14 to 23 December 1986. The flight took 9 days, 3 minutes, and 44 seconds and covered 24,986 miles , more than doubling the old distance record set by...
, 1986, Voyager, first non-refueled circumnavigation in an airplane, 9 days, 3 minutes and 44 seconds. - In 1992 an Air FranceAir FranceAir France , stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the French flag carrier headquartered in Tremblay-en-France, , and is one of the world's largest airlines. It is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance...
ConcordeConcordeAérospatiale-BAC Concorde was a turbojet-powered supersonic passenger airliner, a supersonic transport . It was a product of an Anglo-French government treaty, combining the manufacturing efforts of Aérospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation...
achieved the fastest non-orbital circumnavigation in 32 hours 49 minutes and 3 seconds. - Bertrand PiccardBertrand PiccardBertrand Piccard is a Swiss psychiatrist and balloonist.Born in Lausanne, Vaud canton, Bertrand Piccard, along with Brian Jones, was the first to complete a non-stop balloon flight around the globe...
and Brian JonesBrian Jones (aeronaut)Brian Jones is an English balloonist.Brian Jones, along with Bertrand Piccard, co-piloted the first successful uninterrupted circumnavigation of the world on board the balloon Breitling Orbiter 3...
, 1999, first non-stop balloonBalloonA balloon is an inflatable flexible bag filled with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, or air. Modern balloons can be made from materials such as rubber, latex, polychloroprene, or a nylon fabric, while some early balloons were made of dried animal bladders, such as the pig...
circumnavigation in Breitling Orbiter 3Breitling OrbiterBreitling Orbiter was the name of three different Rozière balloons made by Cameron Balloons to circumnavigate the globe, named after the sponsor Breitling...
, 19 days, 1 hour and 49 minutes, covering 42,810 kilometres. - Polly VacherPolly VacherPolly Vacher is an English aviator specialising in long-distance solo flights. She was awarded the MBE for services to charity in 2002. She lives in Oxfordshire....
, 2001, in the smallest aircraft flown in a solo circumnavigation by a woman, via Australia and the Pacific. - Steve FossettSteve FossettJames Stephen Fossett was an American commodities trader, businessman, and adventurer. Fossett is the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon...
, 2 July 2002, first solo balloon circumnavigation. - Steve FossettSteve FossettJames Stephen Fossett was an American commodities trader, businessman, and adventurer. Fossett is the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon...
, 3 March 2005, GlobalFlyerVirgin Atlantic GlobalFlyerThe Scaled Composites Model 311 Virgin Atlantic GlobalFlyer is an aircraft designed by Burt Rutan in which Steve Fossett flew a solo nonstop airplane flight around the world in a time of 67 hours 1 minute from February 28, 2005 until March 3, 2005...
, first non-stop, non-refueled solo circumnavigation in an airplane, 67 hours, covering 37,000 kilometres. - Steve FossettSteve FossettJames Stephen Fossett was an American commodities trader, businessman, and adventurer. Fossett is the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon...
, 11 February 2006, GlobalFlyer, longest non-stop, non-refueled solo flight (with circumnavigation) in an airplane, covering 42469.5 kilometres (26,389.4 mi), in 76 hours and 45 minutes.
Spacecraft
- On 12 April 1961 Yuri GagarinYuri GagarinYuri Alekseyevich Gagarin was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut. He was the first human to journey into outer space, when his Vostok spacecraft completed an orbit of the Earth on April 12, 1961....
made the first human flight in spaceHuman spaceflightHuman spaceflight is spaceflight with humans on the spacecraft. When a spacecraft is manned, it can be piloted directly, as opposed to machine or robotic space probes and remotely-controlled satellites....
, and completed the first orbit of the Earth, in Vostok 1Vostok 1Vostok 1 was the first spaceflight in the Vostok program and the first human spaceflight in history. The Vostok 3KA spacecraft was launched on April 12, 1961. The flight took Yuri Gagarin, a cosmonaut from the Soviet Union, into space. The flight marked the first time that a human entered outer...
, in 108 minutes. - The second and third orbital circumnavigations, the first two to have multiple orbits, were made by Gherman TitovGherman TitovGherman Stepanovich Titov was a Soviet cosmonaut who, on August 6, 1961, became the second human to orbit the Earth aboard Vostok 2, preceded by Yuri Gagarin on Vostok 1...
(17.5 orbits, a little over a day, for the Soviet Union) and John GlennJohn GlennJohn Herschel Glenn, Jr. is a former United States Marine Corps pilot, astronaut, and United States senator who was the first American to orbit the Earth and the third American in space. Glenn was a Marine Corps fighter pilot before joining NASA's Mercury program as a member of NASA's original...
, in Friendship 7 (3 orbits, almost five hours, for the USA, first American orbital flight), respectively. - The first woman to circumnavigate the Earth in orbit, and to also do so multiple times, was Valentina TereshkovaValentina TereshkovaValentina Vladimirovna Tereshkova is a retired Soviet cosmonaut, and was the first woman in space. She was selected out of more than four hundred applicants, and then out of five finalists, to pilot Vostok 6 on the 16 June, 1963, becoming both the first woman and the first civilian to fly in...
, who made forty-eight orbits between 16 and 19 June 1963, aboard Vostok 6Vostok 6-Backup crew:-Reserve crew:Vostok VI-Mission parameters:*Mass: *Apogee: *Perigee: *Inclination: 64.9°*Period: 87.8 minutes9090...
. - Frank F. Borman IIFrank BormanFrank Frederick Borman, II is a retired NASA astronaut and engineer, best remembered as the Commander of Apollo 8, the first mission to fly around the Moon, making him, along with fellow crew mates Jim Lovell and Bill Anders, the first of only 24 humans to do so...
, James A. Lovell Jr.Jim LovellJames "Jim" Arthur Lovell, Jr., is a former NASA astronaut and a retired captain in the United States Navy, most famous as the commander of the Apollo 13 mission, which suffered a critical failure en route to the Moon but was brought back safely to Earth by the efforts of the crew and mission...
, and William A. AndersWilliam AndersWilliam Alison Anders is a former United States Air Force officer, NASA astronaut, businessman, and engineer. He is, along with Apollo 8 crewmates Frank Borman and Jim Lovell, one of the first three persons to have left Earth orbit and traveled to the Moon .-Biography:Anders was born to Arthur...
, 21–27 December 1968, first human circumnavigation of the Earth-Moon system, 10 orbits around the moon in about 20 hours, aboard Apollo 8Apollo 8Apollo 8, the second manned mission in the American Apollo space program, was the first human spaceflight to leave Earth orbit; the first to be captured by and escape from the gravitational field of another celestial body; and the first crewed voyage to return to Earth from another celestial...
; total trip to the moon and back was more than 6 Earth days. - Sally K. Ride, Ph.D.Ph.D.A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
, 18–24 June 1983, the first American woman to circumnavigate the Earth in orbit, the youngest American to-date to do so (aged 32 years, 23 days), and the first American woman to do so multiple times; she flew 97 orbits during STS-7STS-7STS-7 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission, during which Space Shuttle Challenger deployed several satellites into orbit. The shuttle launched from Kennedy Space Center on 18 June 1983, and landed at Edwards Air Force Base on 24 June. STS-7 was the seventh shuttle mission, and was Challengers second...
aboard Space Shuttle ChallengerSpace Shuttle ChallengerSpace Shuttle Challenger was NASA's second Space Shuttle orbiter to be put into service, Columbia having been the first. The shuttle was built by Rockwell International's Space Transportation Systems Division in Downey, California...
.
Mixed transportation
- Thomas StevensThomas Stevens (cyclist)Thomas Stevens was the first person to circle the globe by bicycle. He rode a large-wheeled Ordinary, also known as a penny-farthing, from April 1884 to December 1886...
was the first person to circle the globe by bicycle. The feat was accomplished between 1884 and 1886. While impressive at the time, a good portion of the trip was by steamer due to technical and political reasons. - Nellie BlyNellie BlyNellie Bly was the pen name of American pioneer female journalist Elizabeth Jane Cochran. She remains notable for two feats: a record-breaking trip around the world in emulation of Jules Verne's character Phileas Fogg, and an exposé in which she faked insanity to study a mental institution from...
traveled around the world with public steamboats and trains in 72 days (from November 14, 1889 to January 25, 1890), a world record, resembling the Around the World in Eighty Days novel. - George Matthew Schilling is reputed to have walkedWalkingWalking is one of the main gaits of locomotion among legged animals, and is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults over the stiff limb or limbs with each step...
around the world between 1897 and 1904, though this feat was unverified. - Clärenore StinnesClärenore StinnesClärenore Stinnes was a German car racer; she and Swedish cinematographer Carl-Axel Söderström were the first people to circumnavigate the world by automobile....
and Carl-Axel Söderström were the first persons to drive around the world in a car between 25 May 1927 and 24 June 1929. - David Kunst was the first verified person to walk around the world between 20 June 1970 and 10 October 1974.
- Arthur BlessittArthur BlessittArthur Owen Blessitt is a traveling Christian preacher, most known for carrying a cross through every nation of the world.-Early life and career:...
walked around the world carrying a 45 lb (20.4 kg) wooden cross, covering 38102 miles (61,319.1 km) through 315 countries, between 1969 and 2008. - Heinz Stucke has been cycling around the world since 1965.
- Sir Ranulph FiennesRanulph FiennesSir Ranulph Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, 3rd Baronet, OBE , better known as Ranulph Fiennes, is a British adventurer and holder of several endurance records. He is also a prolific writer. Fiennes served in the British Army for eight years including a period on counter-insurgency service while...
, Charles Burton and their team circumnavigated 'vertically' via the two poles on the Transglobe ExpeditionTransglobe ExpeditionIn 1979, adventurers Sir Ranulph Fiennes and Charles R. Burton set out to make the first circumpolar navigation, traveling the world "vertically" traversing both of the poles. Starting from Greenwich in the United Kingdom, they went south, arriving at the South Pole on December 17, 1980. Over the...
. - Rick HansenRick HansenRichard M. Hansen, CC, OBC is a Canadian Paralympian and an activist for people with spinal cord injuries. Following a car crash at the age of 15, Hansen sustained a spinal cord injury that paralyzed him from the waist down. Hansen is most famous for his Man In Motion World Tour...
, a world-class paraplegic athlete, became the first person to travel around the world in a wheelchair on 22 May 1987, covering over 40,000 km through 34 countries on four continents. - Robert GarsideRobert GarsideRobert Garside, calling himself The Runningman, is a British runner who is credited by Guinness World Records as the first person to run around the world. Garside began his record-setting run following several aborted attempts from Cape Town, South Africa and London, England...
is credited by Guinness World RecordsGuinness World RecordsGuinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
as the first person to run around the world between 1997–2003, taking 2,062 days to cover 30000 miles (48,280.2 km) across 29 countries and 6 continents. - Jesper OlsenJesper Olsen (runner)Jesper Olsen, or Jesper Kenn Olsen, is an ultra distance runner from Denmark.-Education:Olsen has a Master's degree in political science from Copenhagen University. He also has a law degree.-World Run I:...
travelled 26000 kilometres (16,155.7 mi) in 2004, completed circumnavigation solely on foot (except for airplane or boats over the seas). - Colin AngusColin Angus (explorer)Colin Angus is a Canadian author and adventurer who is the first person to make a self-propelled global circumnavigation. Due to varying definitions of the term "circumnavigation," debate has arisen as to whether or not the route travelled fulfilled the strictest criteria...
circumnavigated the northern hemisphereNorthern HemisphereThe Northern Hemisphere is the half of a planet that is north of its equator—the word hemisphere literally means “half sphere”. It is also that half of the celestial sphere north of the celestial equator...
solely by human power in 2006 but did not qualify under the Guinness guidelines as a human powered circumnavigation. His attempt, however, was recognized by National Geographic. - Jason LewisJason Lewis (adventurer)Jason Lewis is a self-powered English circumnavigator accredited with being the first person to circumnavigate the globe by human power....
completed a full human powered circumnavigation in 2007, covering 46505 miles (74,842.4 km) in both the southern and northern hemispheres that reached antipodal pointsAntipodesIn geography, the antipodes of any place on Earth is the point on the Earth's surface which is diametrically opposite to it. Two points that are antipodal to one another are connected by a straight line running through the centre of the Earth....
, gaining accreditation by Adventurestats by Explorersweb for being the first to circumnavigate the globe using only human power. However it failed to meet Guinness rules for a human powered circumnavigation. - Mark BeaumontMark Beaumont (cyclist)Mark Beaumont is a record-breaking long-distance British cyclist. He held the record for cycling round the world, completing his route on 15 February 2008, having taken 194 days and 17 hours...
broke the record for cycling around globe in 2008. He began his attempt on 5 August 2007 and completed the 18297 miles (29,446.1 km) journey across 4 continents and 21 countries 194 days and 17 hours later on 15 February 2008. - Ed GillespieEd GillespieEdward W. Gillespie is an American Republican political strategist and former Counselor to the President in the George W. Bush White House. Gillespie, along with Jack Quinn, former Chief of Staff to Vice President Al Gore, founded Quinn Gillespie & Associates, a bipartisan lobbying firm...
(environmental communicator and Co-Founder of "Futerra") travelled around the world without flying between March 2007 and March 2008 - Rosie Swale-PopeRosie Swale-PopeRosie Swale-Pope, MBE, born , is an author, adventurer and marathon runner who successfully completed a five-year around-the-world run, raising £250,000 for a charity that supports orphaned children in Russia and to highlight the importance of early diagnosis of prostate cancer...
travelled 32000 kilometres (19,883.9 mi) in 2008 completed circumnavigation solely on foot (except for airplane or boats over the seas). - Garry Sowerby holds four world records for circumnavigation in an automobile.
Fictional
- Jules VerneJules VerneJules Gabriel Verne was a French author who pioneered the science fiction genre. He is best known for his novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea , A Journey to the Center of the Earth , and Around the World in Eighty Days...
's 1872 adventure novel, Around the World in Eighty Days describes a fictional circumnavigation. Upper class Englishman Phileas FoggPhileas FoggPhileas Fogg is the main fictional character in the 1873 Jules Verne novel Around the World in Eighty Days.Fogg attempts to circumnavigate the late Victorian world in eighty days, or less, for a wager of £20,000 with members of London's Reform Club. He takes the wager and leaves with Passepartout,...
and his servant PassepartoutPassepartoutPassepartout may refer to:* Passepartout , a character in Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days novel** Passepartout , a character in The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne television series...
use a variety of transportation means and ingenuity to accomplish the adventurous feat. The book is a tribute to the new transportation possibilities of the early Industrial RevolutionIndustrial RevolutionThe Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, with the coming of steamships, railways, etc, before which a year was a more probable time for a circumnavigation. British actor Michael PalinMichael PalinMichael Edward Palin, CBE FRGS is an English comedian, actor, writer and television presenter best known for being one of the members of the comedy group Monty Python and for his travel documentaries....
attempted in 1988 to follow the route as closely as possible in his television series Around the World in 80 DaysMichael Palin: Around the World in 80 DaysAround the World in 80 Days is a BBC television travel series first broadcast in 1989. It was presented by comedian and actor Michael Palin. The show was inspired by Jules Verne's classic novel Around the World in Eighty Days, in which a character named Phileas Fogg accepts a wager to...
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