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For which of the following achievements is the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama remembered?
Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese explorer in the late fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. He is most famous for being the first European to sail to India. He is thus credited with opening up trade between Europe and the Far East via the ocean, a trend that would propel the Portuguese, Dutch, Spanish, French, and English to global prominence.
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Which of these explorers was the first European to land in Australia?
Captain James Cook is most famous for a series of explorations of the Southern Pacific Ocean. He was the first European to lead an expedition to mainland Australia; the first European to circumnavigate New Zealand; and the first European to land in Hawaii. He achieved this in the eighteenth century.
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Which of these historical figures led the first expedition to successfully circumnavigate the world?
Ferdinand Magellan led the first expedition to successfully circumnavigate the globe from 1519 to 1522. Rather unfortunately for Magellan, he died near the end of the journey, so he is not actually the "first man to circumnavigate the world". However, he is remembered as such as he was the leader of the expedition.
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Henry Hudson was employed by the Dutch East India Company to find __________.
Henry Hudson was employed by the Dutch East India Company to find the fabled Northwest Passage to Asia through the continent of North America. He sailed up the Hudson River (named after him) and found a passage into the heart of modern Canada, but could not proceed further because his crew mutinied. The Northwest Passage, was finally successfully completed in 1906 by Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen.
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