Talk About ItWhat is the definition of

an explorer? What do you

think motivates a person

to explore?

Find out more about

explorers at

www.macmillanmh.com

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Vocabularyperiod

vessels

valuable

documenting

estimated

Real World Reading

The Santa Maria, Columbus’s fl agship

1492-1500: Christopher

Columbus,

sailing under

the Spanish

fl ag, explores

the area

around the

Caribbean Sea.

1508: Juan Ponce de León travels

to Puerto Rico.

1510: Diego Velázquez de Cuellar

and 300 men conquer Cuba.

1513: Ponce de León is the fi rst

European to land in Florida.

1513: Vasco Núñez de Balboa is

the fi rst European to see the

Pacifi c Ocean.

1518: Hernán Cortés leaves

Cuba to explore Mexico.

1519: Alonso Álvarez de Pineda

claims Texas for Spain.

1520: Álvarez de Pineda proves

Florida is not an island but part of

a gigantic continent instead.

1542: Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

publishes a book about his travels

in what is now Arizona, Texas, and

New Mexico.

1539 to 1542: Hernando de Soto

is the fi rst European to see the

Mississippi River.

1592: Juan de Fuca sails up the west

coast of North America from Mexico

to Vancouver Island.

1602: Sebastián Vizcaíno fi nds

Monterey Bay and sets the scene

for the settlement of what we now

call California.

Back in Time with Spanish Explorers

The sixteenth century was a period of great exploration by European countries. Facing known and unknown dangers, explorers set sail in the best sea-going vessels of their day. Many of those explorers who set sail for North America were from Spain.

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Tales of the Taino

This carved fi gure represents a Taino idol or god.

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico

Deep in a forest of the Dominican Republic is an unusual well. It contained more than 240 objects—chairs, jars, baskets, and bowls—that are at least 500 years old. Far from being worthless, these old everyday objects are extremely valuable. They are giving scientists new information about the Taino (tie•EE•no).

The Taino were people who lived throughout the Caribbean, including the countries now called Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. When European explorers started arriving in the Caribbean in 1492, the lives of the Taino were changed forever. Explorers took their land. Many of the Taino were killed. By the 1520s very little was left of the Taino civilization except some artifacts and a few words. Hurricane, barbecue, and canoe are Taino words we still use today.

Scientists and historians are documenting—making a record of—and studying the items from the well. After 500 years of silence, it seems that the story of the Taino will fi nally be told.

Puerto Rico is a territory of the

United States. That means it

belongs to the U.S. but is not

one of the 50 states. Puerto Rico

is located in the Caribbean Sea,

southeast of Miami, Florida. It

consists of the island of Puerto

Rico and the smaller islands of

Vieques, Culebra, and Mona.

Capital: San Juan

Land area: 3,459 square miles

Estimated population: 3,886,000

Languages: Spanish and English

Find out more about Puerto Rico at

www.macmillanmh.com

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Why are scientists devoting their lives to learning about

the least explored territory on Earth—the ocean?

Off the coast of Hawaii in 2000, Sylvia Earle pilots a one-person submarine designed by a company she helped found.

Real World Reading

ComprehensionGenreA Nonfiction Article gives

information about real

people, places, or things.

EvaluateFact and OpinionA fact is something that

can be proved to be true.

An opinion is a belief

that does not have to be

supported by facts.

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Fifteenth- and sixteenth-century European explorers arrived in North America after dangerous ocean voyages. Today we are in another period of ocean-based exploration. Now the focus is on exploring the worlds found under the water. Explorers of the past and the present have a lot in common. However, modern explorers have vessels equipped with technologies that sea captains of the past could never have imagined.

SYLVIA EARLE: “HER DEEPNESS”Many things set Sylvia Earle apart from the great explorers of the past and the present. In 1979 she set the record for the deepest ocean dive—1,250 feet—ever made by a human alone and untethered—not connected in any way to a vessel or other object. That feat earned her the title “Her Deepness.” In 1985 she set another record for diving solo. This time she dove to 3,000 feet in a submersible—a “compact” version of a submarine—she helped design.

Over the course of Earle’s career of more than fi fty years, she spent more than 6,000 hours under water. She held the positions of Explorer-in-Residence at the National Geographic Society and Chief Scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)—the fi rst woman ever to hold that post. She co-founded and served as chief executive of a company that designs diving equipment. Add to this list the titles of mother and grandmother.

According to Earle, “This is the Lewis and Clark era for oceans.” She was referring to the historic 1805 expedition to explore the huge and largely unknown area of the U.S. known as the Louisiana Purchase. Lewis and Clark mapped and documented the new territory.

Sylvia Earle at Woods Hole, Massachusetts,in 1995

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“The ocean is the cornerstone of all life,” Earle pointed out. “It produces most of the oxygen in the atmosphere. It shapes climate and weather. If the seais sick, we will feel it. If it dies, we die.” She based her work on her belief that ignorance is the greatest threat of all to this resource that is so valuable to life on Earth. “We know more about Mars than we know about the oceans,” she has said. This scientist who is also an explorer, a businesswoman, and a grandmother has dedicated her life to both exploring and protecting the oceans of the world.

ROBERT BALLARD: EXPLORING “SHIPWRECK ALLEY”Robert Ballard is best known as the explorer who located the wreck of the luxury steamship Titanic. Like Sylvia Earle, he is a National Geographic Society Explorer-in-Residence. As Director of the Institute for Exploration (IFE), Ballard continues to dedicate his work to revealing the mysteries of the world’s oceans. He and his team locate and study ancient shipwrecks in an effort to understand early human history.

Ballard’s team is studying wrecks like this one (left) in Lake Huron. It is the freighter Montana, shown below in 1872.

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Ballard and his team don’t always have to travel to distant oceans to fi nd interesting old shipwrecks. In fact they don’t have to go any further than Lake Huron, one of the Great Lakes. There, within the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve, is an area known as “Shipwreck Alley.” It is estimated that more than 100 shipwrecks dating back to the 1800s sit on the bottom of the lake. Ballard believes that fi nding and documenting them will tell an important story about trade and shipbuilding in North America.

Using a submersible called Little Hercules, the IFE team has identifi ed a number of well-preserved wrecks. One is the Cornelia B. Windiate, which sank on November 28, 1875. It went down with all crew members and 332 tons of wheat. Cameras have photographed the ship’s three wooden masts, still standing tall; its anchors, deck, and rigging; and its name, carved into the hull.

As their work in “Shipwreck Alley” continues, Ballard and his team expect to increase awareness of one aspect of U.S. history.

A sonogram—a picture made with sound waves—shows the Cornelia B.Windiate on the fl oor of Lake Huron.

Think and Compare

1. How did Sylvia Earle

earn the nickname

“Her Deepness”?

2. Why does Robert Ballard

want to investigate

the shipwrecks in Lake

Huron?

3. What facts does Sylvia

Earle use to support

her opinion that it is

important to understand

and protect the world’s

oceans?

4. Based on these

selections, what

generalization can you

make about explorers

both past and present?

Robert Ballard carries a salvaged artifact.

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Nearly 500 years before Christopher Columbus, bold Viking sailors crossed the Atlantic Ocean. Vikings were the fi rst Europeans to reach North America. They lived in a part of Northern Europe called Scandinavia. Most Vikings were peaceful farmers, traders, and gifted craftsmen. But they were also excellent shipbuilders.

Viking ships were brilliantly designed. They were tough enough to sail hundreds of miles on the open sea. They were light enough to be carried over land. When there was no wind, the crews could row the ships with oars.

Vikings traveled far in search of goods such as silk, glass, and silver. Some Vikings sailed west and settled the islands of Iceland and Greenland. Between 997 and 1003 A.D., a Viking named Leif Eriksson landed in what is now Canada. The Vikings probably stayed for less than ten years, though they traded with Native Americans for much longer. A bit of their culture can still be found on our calendar. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are named for Viking gods!

Lo ds ofthe Seas

Viking ship from 850-900 A.D. on display in the Viking Ship Museum, Oslo, Norway

A tenth-century Viking helmet

Answer Questions

Go On

Test StrategyOn My OwnThe answer is not in the

selection. Form an opinion

about what you read for

questions 4 and 5.

600

STOP

Directions: Answer the questions.

1. Where did the Vikings originally live?

A Canada

B Scandinavia

C Iceland and Greenland

D the Atlantic coast

2. According to the selection, which of these was a

feature of Viking ships?

A They were large enough to hold many people.

B They were light enough to be carried over land.

C They had very colorful sails.

D They were made from rare and expensive wood.

3. Which of these answers shows the cultural infl uence

of the Vikings?

A Some days of the week have Viking names.

B Vikings left ships in North America.

C Vikings were gifted craftsmen.

D Americans adopted Viking ship designs.

4. Vikings were superb shipbuilders. What made their

ships so good? Use the picture and the text to support

your response.

5. People have explored new lands and the oceans.

Should we continue to explore space and the skies

beyond Earth? Why or why not? Tip

Form an opinion.

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Write to a PromptIn the selection “Exploring the Undersea Territory” you

read about two modern-day explorers. How did their

personal qualities, interests, and skills help them become

undersea explorers? Write your response in three or

more paragraphs, and use details from the article.

Being a Deep-Sea ExplorerPeople who do what Sylvia Earle and Robert

Ballard do have to l ike danger, l i ke to travel, and l ike to study. It ¢s hard to think of a more dangerous job than getting into a l ittle submarine alone and diving to the bottom of the ocean. Any kind of problem could mean death.

Earle and Ballard are both scientists. They went to college and studied hard in order to be able to do the work they do. Earle is actually a botanist—a scientist who studies plants. But the plants she studies grow underwater. Ballard is a marine geologist and geophysicist. That is a scientist who studies the structure of oceans. To be any kind of scientist takes a person who can focus on detai ls.

Explorers l ike Earle and Ballard use science to help others. That ¢s the quality I admire most.

Writing: Extended Response to Literature

I used detai ls to explain my ideas.

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Writer¢s Checklist Ask yourself, who is my audience?

What is the purpose for writing?

Plan your writing before beginning.

Use details to support your main idea.

Be sure your ideas are clear and organized.

Use your best spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Writing Prompt

Sylvia Earle and Robert Ballard are both explorers.

Explain how their interest in the sea has made a

difference in their lives and in ours. Write three

paragraphs, and use details from the article in

your answer.

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